Universal Titans
by Kiba Sniper
Summary: A series of drabbles revolving around various scenarios, episodes, pairings and characters. Chapter 9: Five II.
1. Never Alone

So, here's another series of drabbles that you guys probably see every time you come on. XD

Teen Titans © DC Comics

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Starring: Lightning and Kole. Friendshipper.

Never Alone

Kole collected the firewood in her arms, humming a soft tune to herself that Jericho taught her during her time together with him after defeating the Brotherhood of Evil. Gnaark had fallen asleep in their shared home, and the stars glimmered over her head. Sparks of light fell from overhead amidst the trees, but she was used to the pale lightning of the night. Watching the sky gave her a sense of calmness, washing over her fear even though she could be attacked at any moment. Gnaark warned her about venturing off by herself, but she knew so many secret passages throughout the forest that could guide her back home.

Kole placed the wood into a small pouch made of thick leaves. She brushed her pink hair back, listening to the hushed voice of the wind. A sigh escaped her lips, closing her eyes as the frail breeze gently whipped her face gently. Her bright blue eyes seemed out of place amongst the forest, and most people would call her insane to leave a technological city for such a backwards forest. Kole laughed when Argent had asked her why she left her home, but she simply replied that she did not want to be controlled like a doll anymore. Argent decided to drop the subject almost immediately after that was said.

She began her way back to her small hut shared with Gnaark, a small grin on her jubilant face. However, a sudden cracking noise jolted her attention, and fright instantly took over. She remained, crouching low as her ears continued to pick up an odd, high-pitched shrieking. A roar was soon accompanied by the crackling, and Kole recognized the scream as one of the pterodactyls that lived nearby.

"Why in the clouds does this happen to me?" a voice cried.

Kole cringed at the voice, deciding to creep along. She edged herself closer to a patch of shrubbery, concealing herself as sparks of yellow blasted off randomly into the air. There she saw a disdainful pterodactyl swoop low at her prey, screeching loudly. The boy she was fighting was easily leaping away, ducking her bites and sending charges of electricity at her. Kole gasped in recognition, covering her hands with her mouth before leaping out of the shrubs.

"Hey! You!" she cried, waving her arm at him. "Come here! You'll be safer!"

Lightning immediately considered her, staring at her curiously. Before he could speak, a wing of the pterodactyl smashed him in the side of the face. Grunting, he fell along the ground until his back crashed into a tree. Holding his shoulder painfully, he glanced up wearily to find the screaming beast looming over him hungrily, and his pupils dilated.

Rolling to the side as the pterodactyl launched its large, sharp fangs at his head, the creature was soon caught in the bark of the trees, reeling to try to budge free. Lightning gasped, sitting upright before slowly getting to his feet. Staggering towards Kole, he looked down at her with interest, attempting to remember where he saw the young girl before.

"You're Lightning, right? I remember you from when we helped defeat the Brotherhood of Evil," Kole stated, grinning slightly.

"Ah, yes, they were a troublesome bunch of fiends," Lightning replied, shaking her hand. "You are…" He trailed off, trying desperately to remember her name. "It starts with a K correct?"

"Kole," she deadpanned, her eyes lowering agitatedly.

"My apologies, Kole. I'm terrible at recalling names." Giving her a quirky grin, he was instantly cut off by the shriek of the pterodactyl.

"What did you do to her?" Kole asked, watching the struggling creature.

Lightning crossed his arms, lowering his head in mild embarrassment. "My brother Thunder and I were searching the Arctic for detected traces of the fallen Brotherhood of Evil. We were the closest Titans in the area besides you and Gnaark. Apparently, remnants of a base were still active when we investigated. I…" Lightning trailed off, a blush beginning to creep across his cheeks. "…I hit a button on one of the machines, thus activating the security and systems. Thunder and I were separated, and I was chased out into the snow where I was knocked over the head by some sort of machine, falling through a crevice. As I fell, I attempted to regain my stability by winding up my electricity to fly when I hit the beast."

"So you winded up here because of a mistake?" Kole summarized with a grin.

"Don't taunt me." Narrowing his eyes at her, Lightning retrieved his Titans communicator from his chest plate, flipping it on. "We sent you a signal. You didn't come."

Kole blinked, staring at him in confusion. Lightning handed his to her, pointing to a messaging system that requested her and Gnaark's help. Gasping lightly, she reached down to her pocket where she thought her communicator was, only to find a collected air. Smiling sheepishly, she giggled softly as Lightning narrowed his eyes down at her angrily.

"Seems that I'm not the only one who made a mistake," he jeered, smirking.

"At least I don't fall on pterodactyls," she shot back.

Flares of enmity flared up between them, glaring at each other darkly. Neither one backed down until Kole stuck her tongue out at him. Perplexed at her childish actions, Lightning wanted nothing more than to give the girl what for or a dose of his "fun". Instead of winding her down with his namesake, Lightning copied her motion. Crossing his arms, Lightning huffed and began to walk away until Kole snatched his wrist.

"Are you stupid?" she asked, pointing to his shoulder. "You're hurt."

Lightning blinked, staring over to her gesture. A large bruise had formed small red dots around the base of the large purple patch of pain. Wincing as he brushed the backside of his hand over it, he cringed and attempted feebly to conceal his hurt. Stating that the wound was not such a concern, he waved her goodbye and began to stalk off.

Scowling deeply, she leaped off and snatched his headband straight off his head. Lightning gasped, holding the barren shadow of his cheeks and watched as she dangled his prized headband. She swiftly placed it over her forehead as Lightning made a wild grab with his injured arm. A popping sound divided them, and Lightning gripped his shoulder, falling to his knees.

"I told you, you aren't alright!" Kole cried, dragging him to his feet. "Please, let me help you."

Sighing, he conceded to her help and let himself be pulled unwillingly. His shoulder panged uncontrollably as if a million insects were biting at him. Lightning shivered as a breeze swept above them, noticing that Kole hardly seemed affected at the freezing blast. The question stirred around in his mind, but he ignored it once the cry of the pterodactyl filled the air.

They turned around nervously, finding the dinosaur wrenched free of her tree prison, surging to the skies. Out of instinct, Kole snatched Lightning's hand and ran off. In this situation, fighting would only aggravate her. Ignoring his protests, Kole threw him into a nearby bush, hiding with him as the pterodactyl flew over their heads. Shooting her a dirty glance once she was out of sight, Lightning snarled and crossed his arms.

"Magnificent, now the pterodactyl will only search until she captures or destroys us," he growled sardonically.

"I know you like to fight, but you're injured and Gnaark isn't here," Kole reasoned with a shrug.

"Still, I could have fought," he argued before holding his shoulder. "That's quite a contradiction. Seems I am in no condition to battle."

"Finally, you're being reasonable," she snickered, earning a grunt in response.

Looking up at the trees, Kole watched quietly as the wind pressed on. A few leaves were blown off, landing around them melodically as the whistling winds blew by them. Disbelieving giggling as Lightning rubbed his arms from the cold, Kole walked off with him following.

Lightning looked over his shoulder, wondering worriedly where his brother was. He and Thunder were hardly ever separated unless battle required them for different missions, which was one time. Thunder was his conscience, giving him advice even though he usually fought with him over his "helpful hints". One time, they nearly destroyed Jump City over their arguments on Lightning's behavior. Yet, they were extremely close no matter what anyone said. Lightning noticed that Kole was on her own as she dragged him to her home, and he cocked his head at her.

"Come on in. Gnaark is probably asleep. He sleeps like a log," Kole stated, opening the wooden door.

Lightning peered inside the quaint abode, eyes widened in curiosity. Her home could not have been anymore simpler. Everything was crafted from wood from the chairs to the table and even the shelves. Lightning heard an audible snoring from a few rooms over, perking his interest until Kole stated that Gnaark did not like to be awoken. A certain incident with Cyborg nearly ended up with him having almost all of his circuitry ripped off. Cringing at the thought, Lightning sat down in one of the chairs as Kole left the room.

Kole rummaged through the cabinet, humming to herself. Lightning watched her through a crack in the door, curiously wondering why she was even concerned about him. He sighed, rubbing through his hair and felt a strange nakedness to his forehead and cheeks. Realizing she still held onto his treasured headband, he sighed and slumped his head on the table.

Kole slapped a large set of bandages and scissors on the table, jolting the yellow elementalist up. Staring at the scissors with accusing fear, Lightning glanced over to her as she unwrapped the bandages. Ordering him to hold out his arm, she was glad to find that he obeyed and began to wrap the bandages over his shoulder. Hissing at the contact, Lightning bit his lip to hold back a yelp.

"You know, you're pretty strong," Kole complimented, grinning as she gently continued to wrap. "Standing up to a pterodactyl and living is a feat, especially when you're on your own."

"Nothing is as quick or as strong as Lightning!" he jeered, laughing condescendingly until she slapped his wounded shoulder. "Ow! Why'd you hit me?"

"Give a compliment, and he makes it seem like he's the king of the galaxy." Sighing, Kole snatched the scissors and snipped the bandage off. Tightening and smoothing the rest out, she grinned. "There, it'll get better soon, but just keep the movement to a minimum. You'll be better within a matter of days."

Flexing his arm weakly, Lightning grimaced and nodded. "Thunder is definitely not going to be pleased that I got injured."

"Is he an overprotective brother?"

Lightning nodded. "When we were young children, on the day we discovered our powers in South Vietnam, I had fallen off a cliff. That's how I discovered that I could transmute the lower half of my body to electricity. Truly amusing, I must add, that my brother soon learned that he could ride on a cloud when he jumped down to save me. Due to our…different ways, we were chased out of our village and were forced to live in the sky." His head lowered slightly, staring holes at the floor. "We never got to see our mother after the incident. She probably would not even recognize us due to our skin changing."

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't want to make you sad." She lowered her head, ashamed of herself. "I ran away here because I didn't want to be controlled by my parents anymore for money." At Lightning's inquisitive stare, she smirked somberly. "My father used me as a byproduct of one of his experiments, and I gained the power to turn into crystal. When my parents wanted to use me to make money, I ran away."

"You weren't scared?"

"I was terrified. I didn't want to leave, but if it meant being free, I would." Kole collected the scissors and clutter of bandages, walking away towards the cabinet. "I am free to do as I want. I'm happy here, Lightning."

"Then, you do not miss your parents?"

The question caught her off guard, jolting her. Kole pursed her lips, glancing away shyly. Her gaze lowered to the floor, sighing quietly. She heard Lightning's footsteps come to her, and she stared at the almost hidden shadow he left from the glimmering moon above. She felt his hand on her shoulder, prompting her to catch eyes with him.

"Honestly, there are times when I do. Sometimes I miss them so much that I can't stand it. If I go back, it will just be the same anyway." She lowered her head, her shoulders heaving up before slumping. "However, I know I'm needed here. Gnaark is like the brother I always wanted, and this hut that people call primitive is where I belong. If the Titans need me, they know where to find Gnaark and I."

"For such a young girl, you are wise beyond your years." Lightning shook his head admirably, closing his eyes almost disbelievingly. "I suppose the predicament is like that for my brother and I. We live alone in the clouds, but his company is enough to keep him at peace."

Kole and Lightning exchanged amused grins before she quietly looked in the direction of Gnaark's room. His boisterous snoring had suddenly ceased, surprising them both as a sudden shriek filtered the air. Kole dropped everything, darting out the front door with Lightning following. His shoulder staggered as he ran, sending soft pangs throughout his arm. She threw the door open, gasping in shock.

"You," she hissed malevolently.

Dr. Light grinned down at her, standing on a flying contraption that was much like a massive snowboard. His body armor gleamed in the darkness, matching his grayish white teeth. "Those meddling Teen Titans aren't here to rescue you, my dear. This time, you're mine! The world will be covered in my rule in light!"

"You are not harming her!" Lightning vowed and threw out his uninjured arm as a wave of his namesake shot out.

The villain sneered, raising his arm that held a strange white plate. Lightning's attack was redirected into a tree, sending it up in a spark of flames before disintegrating. Gasping, Lightning glared back up to the nefarious doctor as he leaned forward on his board. In a rapidness that surprised the elementalist, Dr. Light raised his other hand and a small consolidation of light energy and blasted it. Snatching Kole just in time, Lightning flew off into the massive forest and the cunning doctor followed in rage.

"Hand her over! You will not get away!" he shouted, throwing beams of light in his direction.

Wriggling in his grasp, Kole squirmed so that she was just above Lightning's injured shoulder. "Where's Gnaark? What did you do to him?"

"Oh, I simply had some of my dear robots take care of the Neanderthal! Also, a strange blue fellow was there with him, a Thunder or something! I believe that is your brother, right?" Dr. Light taunted.

"My brother?" Lightning repeated to himself, fearfully. Stopping in mid-air, he jerked Kole back into his grasp and glowered at his enemy. "If you harm them, you will answer strictly to me!"

"What good can a lightning rod do against me? My light is pure while yours is concentrated electricity, and my technology deflects such attacks!"

Dr. Light threw out his hand, tossing another light beam from his suit. Grinning wickedly as Lightning ducked, he blasted forward on his board and crashed into him. Thankfully, he managed to throw Kole onto a tree branch before colliding with a tree. Grunting, Lightning's shoulder cracked, and he winced. Anger bestowed him as he lunged himself at the doctor and tackled him off his board. Dr. Light grunted as Lightning socked him straight across the face, falling to the ground as the Honorary Titan flipped around and landed perfectly on his feet.

"What have you done to Thunder?" he demanded harshly, feeling the blood in his veins boil to their hottest.

"Oh, I simply sent him on a little trip with the caveman. I'm sure they have been decapitated by now," Dr. Light cruelly snickered. Leaping to his feet, he snatched his board and threw it at Lightning who skillfully dodged, but a beam of light blinded him. Sending a wrenching punch to his face, he guffawed as Lightning skidded backwards, stumbling and falling.

Suddenly, a large fruit dropped over his head. The pink contents of the strange watermelon-like fruit exploded like a bomb as Dr. Light was soon soaked with the tanginess. Licking his pinkened face, he grinned lightly, muttering that it was sweet. Observing the tree where the fruit had fallen, he snarled at Kole who childishly stuck her tongue out. Swinging down from a vine, she barely avoided the light beam aimed at her as she slid slyly from the vine.

Using Kole's distraction to his advantage, Lightning charged at him, aiming a kick to his face. Dr. Light cried out, falling flat on his back. Lightning hovered over him, charging his hands up and aimed at his face. Sneering at his startled face, he looked over to Kole who was walking over to him.

"Do you concede?" Lightning taunted.

"No," Dr. Light sneered, throwing out his hand.

A beam of light ejected, curling around Kole. The young girl cried out, particles of light stabbing into her body before she finally turned her body into crystal to keep the pain away. In desperation to save her, Lightning blasted at the beam, cancelling out the beam of light. However, the cunning light user scrambled to his feet and snatched Kole's crystallized form and darted off on his board. Stupefied, Lightning watched in horror as he dashed off with Kole suddenly crying out in human form. Taking charge, Lightning transmuted the lower half of his body into electricity and took off.

Kole punched Dr. Light's in a feeble attempt to free herself. At times like these, she wished Gnaark was there. That way, the fear in her heart would diminish, and she wouldn't be alone. Alone…that word startled her dearly. If she didn't have Gnaark, she would probably lose herself to insanity or die from one of the dinosaurs devouring her when she didn't have her body encased in crystal. Kole glanced over Dr. Light's shoulder, finding a spark of yellow in the distance. Lightning was coming, which immediately soothed her until the paranoia arose in her throat.

"Where are you taking me?" she demanded.

"Just to have my way with that crystal power of yours. Remember last time? Second time is the charm!" he cheered, flying above the trees. "As for you friend Gnaark, I set him on a little mission."

"M-mission?"

Scaring her soul with his devious smirk, he sniggered lowly. "I left him a little something that should keep both him and Thunder busy. Those robots from the remains of the Brotherhood of Evil really do come in handy with the right programming."

Gasping, her cobalt eyes widened in absolute fear. Struggling in his grasp, she groaned for release and began kicking him violently. Cringing, Dr. Light swerved on his board as he attempted to control the stubborn girl, almost knocking himself into a few large tree branches. As their turbulent scuffle heightened, Dr. Light was finally shoved over the edge when Kole slammed her foot in his, well, private area. Eyes welling up with tears, he muffled his moan in a high-pitched whine as Kole beamed in her sneer.

"You impudent little girl," Dr. Light seethed, raising his hand to strike her. "You will pay!"

Punching her over the skull, he suddenly cradled his fist in pain when he realized she had crystallized herself. Her sudden change in weight shocked him, and he released her, gasping as he did so. Kole panicked, reaching out for anything as her hand grappled with a branch. Unfortunately, the friction impacted her hard, and she continued to slide down the branch at an alarmingly fast right. Her hands burned as she yelped, subconsciously releasing and didn't even get a chance to scream.

Moments before she hit the ground, Lightning barreled through, catching her when she was at least a foot away from impact. He stumbled in the air, falling to the ground and rolling, but with her securely in his arms. Wincing when he finally stopped, Lightning immediately rolled off her, finding the girl wide-eyed and blank-faced.

"K-Kole?' he stammered, shaking her shoulder.

Emitting a groan, she blinked and regained control of body movements. The paralyzing fall had startled her into submission, freezing her entirely. Kole shook her head, rubbing it as she finally noticed Lightning boring down on her intently. Smiling weakly, she thanked him for saving her life.

"We're Titans, we look out for each other," Lightning replied in a serious tone that seemed odd in his chords. Ruffling her hair, he smirked and added, "Just because one little girl is by herself most of the time does not mean she is alone."

"Little!" she spat, glaring at him, fuming internally. "I'll have you know, Lightning, that I can handle myself."

Lightning sneered until she slapped his wounded shoulder. A momentary flicker of pain washed over his face until he chocked down a yelp and grunted. Rubbing his shoulder, he narrowed his eyes at her until Dr. Light's board came into view. Noticing Dr. Light's fury, Lightning decided that a little provoking would prove most helpful.

"You are so easily annoyed like a monkey," Lightning jabbed.

"Better yet, he looks like one," Kole chimed in, crossing her arms arrogantly.

All the blood shot up to his face, and Dr. Light hissed before charging in absolute rage. Blindly striking, he missed Lightning by a whole yard until his target bashed him straight across the face. Lightning jumped over him, slamming his heel into the bridge of his nose. Dr. Light stumbled backwards, his eyes watering and rolling before plopping to the ground. Groaning, his head jostled before slumping out cold.

"He's out cold?" Kole asked aloud, bending down next to him. Pressing a finger to his temple, she sighed. "You did it."

"I had help from a friend," Lightning stated, smiling shyly.

Kole and Lightning laughed quietly with the latter snatching Dr. Light by the scruff of his suit. Just as peace was restored between the new friends, a shrill cry echoed throughout the forest. Charging him left hand with electricity, Lightning faced the noise as Kole snatched the unconscious villain. They waited patiently as the noises grew louder, but were unable to decipher where the shouts and crashes were coming from. Suddenly, a rock was thrown over Lightning's head, ducking just in time and blasted the rock apart.

"Gnaark, hold on! Look!"

Kole instantly perked up at the Neanderthal's name, crying, "Gnaark, is that you?"

From the brush, Gnaark came running out and screamed his name frantically. Catching sight of her, he instantly brightened and wrapped his massive arms around her in a bone-breaking embrace. Lightning blinked, distinctively remembering the brute when he destroyed Ding Dong Daddy's hot rod, swinging a crystallized Kole around like a sword.

A hand clasped over Lightning's injured shoulder, and the former shrieked in agony. Thunder flinched as his brother rubbed wound disdainfully, finally seeing the bandage in the darkness. Lightning mumbled inaudibly before catching eyes with Thunder. Instantly, he perked up before frowning and pointed at his shoulder.

"The Green Ones says that I'm the one with no conscience," Lightning growled, smacking his twin's shoulder. "Though, I am glad to see that you are well, brother."

"Lightning, I was concerned of your welfare. W-what happened to your shoulder?" Thunder asked, eyes widening in fear.

"It is but a scratch, honest. Thunder, this is my new friend, Kole."

Kole stared up at the gentle giant and smiled. "I remember you! You took care of Trident!"

"Thank you for taking care of my brother. I hope he did not cause too much trouble." Thunder bowed respectfully as Lightning rolled his eyes.

Gnaark began to repeat his name, pointing at Thunder with interest. Kole stared at her friend while the brothers blinked simultaneously. Exchanging confused stares, both shrugged until Kole giggled lightly.

"Gnaark said that Thunder helped him defeat those rogue robots from the Brotherhood of Evil and wants to thank him for his help," she translated, grinning immensely.

"Oh, thank you, Gnaark," Thunder stated, returning the large grin the behemoth wore that covered a quarter of his face.

"Gnaark!" the caveman jeered, shaking the blue brother's hand.

"We will visit, Kole," Lightning promised, shaking her hand. "That way, I will not forget you."

Kole grinned, gripping his hand tightly. "Because if you don't, I'll be the one to find you."

Upon their handshake, Lightning rustled her pink hair once more. Kole pouted as the yellow elementalist pulled away, smirking. Calling forth a cloud, Thunder stepped on and Lightning followed, deciding to annoy his brother. Leaping onto Thunder's back, he waved Kole and Gnaark off as Thunder complained that he was an immature child. Kole beamed up at him, waving him off as Lightning returned the grin. Gnaark placed her atop his shoulder, imitating Thunder.

As they were high above the clouds and back to their home in the white fluff, Thunder gave his brother a querulous glance. "Lightning, did you have fun?"

"Fun?" Lightning repeated, surprised. He looked back down at the Arctic through a small patch in the clouds, watching the snow collect from wind whipping by below. A grin stretched slowly across his face, nodding quietly. "I believe I did, brother, I believe I did."

"Say, where is your headband?"

Lightning suddenly paled, clutching at his forehead in shock before glaring down at the clouds, screaming at the top of his lungs, "Kole!"

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Yay, first is a series of drabbles. Technically, this is my third Teen Titans fic, but this series is of drabbles which means random one-shots above anything in the Titans' world.


	2. Second Traitor

Teen Titans © DC Comics

Starring: See-More, Jinx, and Kid Flash. Implied Jinx/Kid Flash, one-sided See-More/Jinx.

Second Traitor

See-More glanced over to his female comrade, noticing that she was unresponsive to his holler. He had been trying to get her attention for a while now, but Jinx seemed to be up in the clouds. The other boys in their group-excluding Mammoth who was sent to defeat Cyborg in the Arctic and hadn't come back yet- stared at her in confusion. Even Gizmo was starting to become concerned. As the young evil genius of their group latched onto her stripped stocking, it proved to be the only way to get her attention when she slapped his hand away.

"W-what is it? What?" she snapped irritably if startled.

"First, ow!" Gizmo snapped, rubbing his hand. "Second, cyclops here was trying to get your attention for the past twenty minutes."

Agitated at the insult, See-More put his annoyance aside when Jinx finally turned to him. "You okay Jinx? You've been spacing out for a while now. You've hardly said a thing ever since Robin was iced."

"Best darn thing I evah saw! Right Billy?" Billy asked in Southern drawl, turning to one of his various clones.

"Ya got that right, Billy! Better than rasslin'!" his clone replied with others guffawing.

"Me? I'm fine," Jinx insisted.

Kyd frowned, cocking his head.

"I'm great, Kyd, really. Once all the other Titans have been flash-frozen, we'll be in the clear," Jinx arrogantly sneered, her pink eyes brightening.

The other boys nodded in agreement, cheering in their own group. See-More smiled, finding that she was alright, but there something still bothered him in the back of his mind. Ever since Kid Flash had vanished, Jinx begun acting stranger by the second. When they would go on heists, Jinx would hardly assist anyone unless it was opening cases with her hexes or blasting a random guard. In fact, she didn't even seem interested in stealing when he presented her with a red jewel necklace as a gift and was promptly declined. During that certain mission, See-More found it hard to believe that Jinx was alright. Something had changed in her, but he couldn't figure it out no matter how hard he contemplated.

At one point, the boys had gotten together to discuss Jinx when she went off by herself at night. Billy made a wild assumption that she was flirting with older men for money on the side until See-More insisted she wasn't "that kind of girl". Mammoth and Kyd suggested that she was just having mood swings, but Gizmo insisted that she was abiding with Billy's guess. He thought that Jinx was seeing Kid Flash secretly because, in his words, "She's obsessed with the stinkin' do-gooder".

The very thought of Jinx liking-or loving-someone else didn't stay in See-More's mind for long. When she hadn't gotten home that night, he decided to explore her whereabouts, but never got the chance when he saw a Jinx running to her room. The scent of a rose lingered around her, and his answer was right there as she darted past him. See-More remained silent, sullenly walking back to his room.

As the time of Teen Titan's destruction grew nearer and reports that a group led by Beast Boy was coming, See-More heard Jinx sigh quietly. The other boys were getting back to bases with other renowned villains like Mumbo and Mad Mod who had once taught at the HIVE Academy. It wasn't pretty or fun for the students.

"Hey, Jinx, you really okay?" See-More asked quietly, taking her arm gently.

"You want the truth or a good lie?" Jinx questioned lowly, lowering her head.

"Depends what the lie is," he joked, smiling, "but really, what's up? I'm your friend, you can count on me."

"I'm worried about this. I don't think this will go well." Jinx hung her head, glancing over to him slightly and lowered her tone. "There's…something telling me that this plan won't turn out like how the Brain's wants it to."

See-More's eye suddenly had a question mark emblazoned onto it. Jinx sniggered at his confusion, smirking with amusement. Before she could elaborate, an explosion rang out from the side of the building. The doors blew out, sending wood bulleting out like sharp rain. They covered themselves with their hands protectively, and when the dust had cleared, two equal smirks donned their faces.

"Alright, Brain! You're going…" Beast Boy was promptly cut off, noticing all of the villains and gulped. "…down?"

See-More bluntly ignored the argument between Madame Rouge and Beast Boy, instead concentrating on those that were missing. Mammoth wasn't present and neither was Private Hive, meaning they were out of the action. Facing Jinx once more, his shoulders rose in shock when Jinx bit her lower lip out of spite for the shape-shifting madwoman. He distinctively recalled her slapping Jinx across the face, and rage coursed through him, but the fear overpowered his movements. When Jinx attacked back, let Kid Flash escape, he knew something was changing inside of her. When she denied him of stealing the computers with him, See-More's dread only started.

Then Beast Boy's crew was on the move. The shortest one, a Spanish boy named Mas, darted towards the controls where the frozen Titans were. The burly wrestler Pantha and the quiet Jericho remained together, rushing out past him. Billy commented that he was her number fan until she punched him into a wall. See-More concentrated on the one that defeated him: Herald. As the trumpet-player darted out in the amassment of villains, he quickly struck with a blow to the face. However, Herald was crafty and leaned backwards, kicking him across the chest. Sent sideways, he switched his lense to his balloon-eye, sending him into the air as he scoured the area. For a few brief moments, the Titans were winning, but the amount of villains destroyed them. He quickly looked out for Jinx who remained by herself, watching the fight. What he saw instantly shocked him.

Like a speeding yellow and red bullet, Jinx was swept off her feet. She was taken to a corridor with metal doors that opened barely in time for her to enter. That speed, he knew who it was. Deactivating his balloon, he dropped to the ground on his knees and cringed at the sudden drop. Stumbling to his feet, he darted after Jinx until Kyd Wykkyd suddenly came up next to him.

"Jinx! Taken! Kid Flash!" he blurted, shaking his friend somewhat violently before bolting through the door.

Kyd stared blankly at him, red eyes dilated until the doors slammed shut. Shaking his head, he returned to the fight just as Mother Mae Eye was suddenly smashed into him, courtesy of Pantha. Kyd immediately wanted to go home.

"You can change for the better, Jinx," he heard Kid Flash say as he quickly swerved behind a corner, peering out.

"I'm bad luck," she insisted, crossing her arms tightly and facing away. "I belong with the villains."

"You don't. People can control their own destiny. Just because your powers make you different doesn't mean you have to be bad," Kid Flash stated, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Instantly, See-More wanted to pummel him. Gritting his teeth, he thought they cracked when Jinx stared up at him wonder. Her pink eyes were lit up like a Christmas tree, and the realization was starting to come to her. See-More felt like gagging himself. Internally, he was entreating Jinx to fight him, to stay with the Hive Five. If she left, well, they would have the right amount of people, but nothing would be the same for him.

"My friends are out there," she murmured just loudly enough for him to hear. "They're fighting not only for the Brotherhood, but for their lives. Maybe I shouldn't have teamed up with Madame Rouge. All she has ever done was caused me misery!" She suddenly slammed her fist into the wall. A small dent had formed, and her eyes, blazed pink, rattled with fury as she soon noticed that her knuckles tinted red.

Kid Flash suddenly took her hand like they were in some sort of romance novel. "Don't beat yourself up over this. Your friends want to be bad, but I can see past this shield you put up, Jinx. It's like I said, just because you have bad luck powers, doesn't mean you have to be bad." Leaning down, he suddenly kissed her knuckles and grinned at her jolt. "Besides, with a cute girl like you on the Titans, the bad guys would drop dead at your beauty."

"That's it!" See-More shrieked, leaping out of his hiding place. Enraged to the point of blasting a ray of energy from his eye, he continued to fire, but Kid Flash was too fast. He aimed at the walls that the sonic youth dashed along, being sure to never go near Jinx. "Get away from Jinx! She's-!"

Kid Flash suddenly stopped behind him, wrapping an arm around his neck. See-More struggled, twisting his body in various directions as the young superhero continued their brawl. Elbowing Kid Flash in the face, he leaped onto him and wrapped his hands around his neck, choking him.

Grimacing, Kid Flash suddenly grinned and began vibrating. Molecules raced at hyper-sonic speeds. See-More's hands grew crimson and hot, and he yelped in pain as he rolled off him. Blowing weakly onto his hands to try and get any feeling back into them, Kid Flash's shadow hung over him victoriously.

"That's enough!" Jinx screamed, coming between them. "Don't fight anymore, either of you."

Kid Flash blinked in shock, blue eyes seeming to enlarge. Nodding sullenly like he was being scolded by his mother, he knelt down to See-More, offering his hand. See-More glared up at him, slapping the hand away like how Jinx did to Gizmo. Getting to his feet, the ex-Hive student stared at his green gloves, sighing audibly.

"See-More," she whispered, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Why him?" he asked quietly.

Jinx blinked, mouth a small gape.

"Why does it have to be _him_? What does he have that I don't?" See-More turned to her, single eye watering, but he blinked, and the tears vanished almost instantly. "Why can't it be me, Jinx?"

Jinx and Kid Flash were both taken aback by his sudden revelation. The latter stepped forward, reaching out to him, but the same result occurred. See-More desperately wanted to plow him into a wall, wipe that cunning smirk off his "perfect" face. Yet, he didn't want to upset Jinx.

If she left with him, he would be devastated. Jinx already knew this, but she hadn't thought of See-More as boyfriend material. When she was with Stone aka Cyborg, she felt giddy, girlish longing because she thought he was cool, admirable and highly respected among the Hive's faculty and students. With Kid Flash, things were different. He made her feel wonderful about herself, giving her chances to covert to the side of justice. However, Jinx couldn't abandon the one family that ever made her feel welcome.

"See-More, my powers made me bad. I was persecuted because I'm bad luck, so I joined the Hive. Around you, Gizmo, Mammoth and the others, I could be myself because I thought you guys were like me. You still are, but now I can see that even with my hexes, I'm sort of like Raven. She was destined to bring horror to the planet by being the daughter of a demon and all, but she chose to become a Titan. See-More, I'm sorry, but I want a chance to have that sort of life," she admitted, touching both of his shoulders and stood in front of him.

See-More stared down at her, his features loosening their tension. His body felt like collapsing into her arms and pleading and crying for her to remain at his side. Even for a few moments longer than her destined betrayal, See-More would give his life for. Toughing the side of his helmet, he thought his spandex was tightening from the horror of it all. Glancing away, he quietly sighed and looked back up at her.

"If this means you'll be happy, Jinx, then go for it," See-More replied, bringing her into a gentle hug. "Remember, if ya need anything or if this…" He quickly sent a glare at Kid Flash. "…jerk hurts you, find me. I'll take care of you."

Jinx embraced him tightly, burying her head against the side of his neck. For a few moments, she felt like sobbing because the sickening thought that this could be the last time of ever seeing him plagued her. Brushing the thought aside, she released him and backed away a few steps with a shy smile and mouthed her thanks.

"I promise I'll take care of her," Kid Flash vowed, offering See-More his hand. "If I don't, feel free to knock me around."

There was something in his tone that convinced See-More to shake that hand. Awkwardly, he slowly pinned for the hand when Kid Flash snatched his. They stared at each other blankly before Kid Flash broke into a sneer that he returned. Releasing the Titan, See-More turned the over way and began walking. Over his shoulder, he waved without looking back because if he did, he may have tried to convince her otherwise. As he turned the corner, he realized something.

Like Jinx, he just betrayed the Hive Five. By letting her go, he betrayed their trust. Walking out on them like this was as if he was shoving his friends into volcano and watched them burn to a blackened crisp. See-More held his head, eyes widened in horror and leant against the wall. Sliding down to his bottom, he stared ahead as he slowly pulled off his helmet.

There were two perfectly normal brown eyes with black hair in a bouncy cut like a small afro. He was nearly blind, and he hated glasses, so he used to suit provided to him at the Hive Junior Academy. He wanted to be blind so he couldn't see the disgusting act he was committing. See-More allowed the tears to fall freely down his face, staring at the colored particles called the wall in bluntness. He didn't wail, sob, or hiccup. The silence was loud enough.

Wiping his eyes, See-More threw his helmet back on and adjusted his vision. He needed to escape, and he bolted down the hall where the escape pods were. Accessing the pod room, he found himself with several types of escape methods, but decided that his own way was best. Opening a window to the outside world, he activated his balloon eye and jumped out, floating with the wind to wherever it would take him.

Meanwhile, back with Jinx, she stared down at her former comrades as Gizmo, Mammoth, Billy, and Kyd stared up at her in horror, shock, confusion, but Gizmo was downright outraged.

"You're with him now? Traitor!" Gizmo shrieked.

"I'll leave them to you," Kid Flash stated with a grin, darting off.

"Sorry. Nothing personal," she sneered, flicking her wrist as a hex played through.

---

Oh, See-More. It's like watching Rock Lee and Sakura from Naruto, except Jinx doesn't reject him so rudely.


	3. Her Master and His Apprentice

Teen Titans © DC Comics

Starring: Terra and Slade.

Her Master and His Apprentice

Betrayal was a word common to her. Leave the Teen Titans, rejoin under Slade's influence, sell them out to her master and crush the heart of a certain green shape shifter. It was all business for her. She did not even feel remorse, well, she did at first, but once Beast Boy shattered her frail heart by saying, she did not have friends, everything once pure was lost.

Terra stood, fitting into her uniform. Her long blonde hair created a haunting shadow over her face. Her once bright blue eyes had paled with darkness, and an ever-present glower coveted the past happiness. Smoothing out the bandages of her uniform, she heard the footsteps behind her and immediately turned.

"Apprentice, congratulations," Slade crooned, stopping once there was a good distance between them. "The Teen Titans are in a stay of despair with their tower destroyed and overrun in ruin."

"Thank you," she murmured, smirking darkly.

"So, I'll safely assume you felt guilty which is why you led Beast Boy away?" he questioned, crossing his arms.

Her composure, shortly lost, stiffened. She closed her eyes, feeling a tightening constriction over her heart. There was a time where she thought Beast Boy truly understood her and trusted him more than the other Titans. Then the ball was dropped. Clenching her fists, her eyes glowed yellow before she gasped.

Slade's cold finger lifted her chin up, sending shivers down her spine. "Not to worry, my dear. He will be no longer very soon. He will never hurt you again."

She nodded, grinning weakly. "Thanks, Slade. Once we get the Titans, I'll be the one to personally destroy Beast Boy."

"First, we need to prepare you."

Terra blinked in confusion once before gasping lightly. Training to control her actions, she should have known. Even with Slade's previous training, which was rigorous on its own with defeating massive monsters in the deserts as an example, she still had some problems.

Under pressure or harsh emotion, Slade observed that Terra was unstable with her powers. Her earth controlling ways could create some sort of rock-infested tornado and nearly destroy everything in its past. Slade usually had to interfere by rescuing her from the mess she conjured, and there were times where she would sometimes break down and cry. He would pity her internally, consoling her externally so long as she would follow his path as his dear apprentice.

She closed her eyes, nodding once. With a hefty sigh, Terra asked, "When do we start with the actual training?"

"Momentarily, my dear apprentice." Slade gestured for her to follow, and she obeyed.

Through the darkness, Terra could easily detect the metal bars around her. Slade's hideout was underground Jump City by the water. Steel surrounded them everywhere, which reminded Terra of a metal sewer without the horrendous smell. She noticed the floor matched the bars as she glided across, knowing that the earth was directly underneath them. Once they reached the main room where several computer screens hung on the wall with only one keypad to control each, Terra stopped.

She felt her body begin to flood with anxiety in her bloodstream. In her entire time with Slade, she never actually fought with him. He never even placed his hand on her until just a few moments ago. What her master would usually do was place her on missions whenever she wasn't sent out to battle allies like Cinderblock was place her on machines. It was like being with the Teen Titans all over again. She would run, shoot, and control her powers to destroy targets, run from lasers or fight the increasing rampage of Slade's robotic drones.

"You've faced several of my minions," Slade finally stated after the silence overtook the room.

Terra nodded, staring intently at his mask, wondering what expression he was making. In his lone eye, she could detect a subtle amusement.

"You've dominated and weathered almost everything I threw at you."

"Almost?" she snapped, anger beginning to rise in her throat. "What's that mean?"

"Beast Boy."

The name of the Titan sent shivers down her spine. Of course, it was him. Everything was about him ever since she abandoned the Teen Titans the first time before going to Slade. She blamed him for betraying her to Robin, stating that she could not control her powers yet, but she trusted him. Beast Boy sold her trust after promising. He lied to her. Lying was something she could not stand after all of the pain she suffered through.

Moving to one place after creating friends that would only be short-term. The routine was a sickening process, but when she found the Titans, she felt whole. They let her into their base, fed her, gave her a place to sleep, and welcomed her in without knowing the truth. The truth, of course, was her seemingly uncontrollable powers, but they did not have to know. Who knew, maybe a few weeks under Cyborg's training regime and none of this would have happened. Unfortunately, Terra's future was already made clear the moment she joined Slade. That reality with the Titans turned to be just another time to move on which she should've done in the beginning.

"He was a mistake!" she shouted, boring holes at the ground. "The next time we meet, he'll pay for ruining everything for me!"

"That rage is prominent, good," Slade sneered. "Already, you are a much better apprentice than Robin."

The joy intensified on her face, which was at first shock. A grin broke, and she could have sworn that Slade, perhaps, was smiling underneath his mask as well. Terra brushed her hair back, letting it go behind her ear before it fell back over her eye. The shadow that crossed her face seemed to poison her bliss, sending her back into a serious glare.

"Now, here's your true test to see if you are finally ready to face the Titans," Slade stated, smirking behind his mask. "Come, Terra, show me what you have learned."

Being rather arrogant, Terra's eyes glowed yellow as she activated her powers. A chuck of rock hurled up underneath her, and she hopped on, charging. Crying out, she waved her hand forward, sending a storm of stones at Slade. With ease, Slade simply leaped over the rocky torrent, landing over Terra and punching her straight across the face. Yelping, she fell backwards off the rock and twisted her body so that she could conjure up two stones and land barely on them. Wobbling slightly, she managed to look up just in time to find Slade rushing at her with her rock. Throwing her hand out, she clenched her fist, and the rock exploded in several different fragments.

Slade flipped to the ground, crouching low as Terra launched the pebbled particles at him. Blocking the stones with his arms, he did not expect the oncoming heel to his forehead. Just in time, he snatched her ankle and smashed her into the ground before throwing her away. Terra groaned, fumbling a few times before finally getting to her feet. Hearing Slade's battle roar, she quickly rolled to the side to avoid the oncoming fists. Waving her hand, a wall of highly compacted rock came to her aid. Slade's fist went straight through as she got to her feet. He struggled in pulling his fist out as Terra moved her hands closer together. Crying out, she threw her hands to the ground, smashing them together as a crevice formed, taking Slade in.

"Slade!" Terra shrieked, gasping. Depleting her powers, she horrifically watched as the crevice closed. "No, what have I done?"

"Excellent, Terra."

She stiffened at the voice, freezing as Slade's hand tightened on her shoulder. "H-how did you…?"

Her answer was a strict kick to the chest. Terra was pummeled backwards, landing on the ground on her back and groaned. Slade placed his foot on her chest, staring down at her coolly. Terra could not speak as he removed his foot, kneeling down next to the bruised girl.

"I made it out just in time before the crevice closed," Slade informed venomously, dragging her up. "I'll admit, your severity and prowess has definitely increased much more than whatever the Titans could ever teach you. However, I am concerned on one little detail."

"And what is that?" Terra inquired, cocking her head slightly. Her hair moved across her face like a doll's.

"You stopped when you thought I was gone. You hesitated, Terra. Hesitation is your downfall. When you face the Titans, you mustn't allow your emotions to take over. Harden them, make yourself stronger, and under my guidance, we'll conquer the city together. Master and apprentice working in unison, my dear."

Terra flinched internally, keeping her best to have her exterior stoic from the grating, yet hopeful criticism. Working with Slade improved her skills, bettered her judgment, taught her that trusting her master was the only person she would ever need. She knew her hesitation would be her downfall, he was right after all. If she allowed any of those Titans to worm their way back into her heart, there would be nothing but sorrow. Especially if that worm was Beast Boy. Terra closed her eyes, nodding solitarily.

Slade noticed the girl's sudden change in emotion. He may have been a villain, but Terra was his apprentice. If she were like Robin, he would have thought this was a ploy for her to attack, but she was different. Terra was loyal to only him now, not the Titans. She was unlike his children who had soon left him because they felt "unsafe" in his ex-wife's words, but he knew better. Slade placed a hand on her head, gently ruffling her hair.

"There is no need to beat yourself up over this, Terra. We are together as master and apprentice. You do not have to hurt yourself mentally for this. Count only on me from now one, and the city will be ours," Slade soothed. Streaking his fingers through her long blonde hair, Slade quietly placed his other hand on her shoulder. "Just think of me as a father figure in your life."

First off, she thought Slade was immune to any other emotion except for placidity and malice. Terra moved her hair behind her ear, exposing her grinning face. Tears began to form in her eyes, but she quickly remembered who was standing in front of her. With a sigh, she nodded and closed her eyes. Instinctively, she hugged Slade, wrapping his arms around his back with such ferocity that he winced. Burying her head on his chest, she began to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Slade demanded with annoyance, trying to squirm away.

"It's just that it's sort of true what you say. You saved me from myself and the Titans. They would never understand me the way you do," Terra admitted, releasing him. Backing away, she put up her dukes and grinned. "Whenever you are ready, I'm good to fight."

"You're already a much better student than Robin."

---

Days later, she was prepared. She knew what was to be done. Terra stared at the broken shard of glass in her hand, staring at her complexion, which had considerably paled due to lack of sunlight. She was only allowed out to converse with the Earth to see what rock formations were there and explore with Slade.

The darkness beckoned her, welcoming her to come forth. She carefully glided through Slade's main room with a spotlight on her. The light allowed her to see only about a foot in front of her, but she knew where she was exactly. Terra looked up at the ceiling, finding the stain glass window like one in a cathedral, and the sun was just coming up. Orange tinted light flooded in, but the girl didn't seem to notice, keeping her eyes steady and focused in front of her.

"You have had mistakes in the past. Made mistakes," Slade stated coldly, staring out the window before facing her, "but all that is behind you, isn't it?"

"Yes," she murmured.

"You belong to me now. Don't you?" Slade questioned, walking towards her.

She kept her eyes closed, hearing his heavier footsteps round by her. "I do."

"From this day forward, will you serve me and me only?"

Terra turned her head, eyes ablaze stubbornly and confidently. Her fists clenched, knowing her choice before she could speak. "I will." She raised her hands, staring at them, and her fingers created red rosebuds on her flesh.

"Will you obey my every command?"

She stepped towards him, already following. "I will."

"Will you fight by my side forever?"

Terra stared down at his hand, looking at what he was holding. Slade was expectant, keeping his arm steady and knowingly. There was a tiny disk with an S imprinted onto it, his insignia. She knew Robin donned the sacred allegiance to Slade in the past before betraying him, too. The disk beckoned her, welcoming her in a trance for her to come. Giving Slade a hard look, there was a moment of hesitation before slowly taking it. Placing it on her breastplate, there was silence.

"I will," she finally stated as she fixed the disk into place.

"And will you destroy the Teen Titans?" Slade questioned, staring searchingly at her.

"I thought you'd never ask," Terra sneered, mouth curving into a cruel smirk.

Revenge took no prisoners was the old saying. The master and apprentice stared at each other for a few moments longer before Terra flocked towards the door in a bolt. Slade watched her emotionlessly due to his mask. Underneath everything, Slade grinned genuinely, knowing he finally had the perfect apprentice.

---

Please, review.


	4. First Mission

Teen Titans © DC Comics

Starring: Thunder, Lightning and various H.I.V.E students.

Note: Takes place during _The_ _Sum of His Parts_.

First Mission

"I wonder if the rain will stop."

"I hope so! It's so ruining my hair!"

Thunder and Lightning peered down from their work, sticks in the former's hands. From a small parting in the clouds, they found a teenage couple walking in their storm. Lightning sneered at them, shaking his head.

"As if one can stop the rain by yelling at the clouds," he scoffed.

Thunder smiled, nodding in compliance. He looked over his shoulder, locating their Titans communicator. They had just become the first honorary Titans a couple of days ago after their confrontation with the Teen Titans. Lightning already hated each of the Titans for ruining their "play time" until Thunder explained to him that they were destructive and harming the lives of others. This seemed to reason with his brother, but once they had gone back to the clouds, Lightning sent a bolt down on Beast Boy.

"Why did you do that?" Thunder had demanded.

Lightning smiled, patting his brother's shoulder. "I heard him make a snide remark that I was in the coloring of a banana."

As the brothers stared down at the couple, their communicators began fizzling. Lightning was the first to notice this, instinctively crouching and snatching it. Thunder did the same, immediately being concerned with the lack of proper words. They could detect Beast Boy attempting to garble something out, but it was mostly rubbished, garbled phrases. An audible shouting garbled in the background when Raven's voice come on.

"Please tell me this is Thunder and Lightning?" she asked.

"We are present," Thunder replied.

"Good," Robin stated, voice coming from Lightning's communicator. "Before you guys came to Jump City, we faced a band of teenaged super villains calling themselves the H.I.V.E. Their names are Jinx, Gizmo and Mammoth, and they escaped prison to go back to their academy. We need you to track down, locate and get them back in prison. Can you two do that?"

"Of course! It will be simple," Lightning jeered. "Why can you not assist though?"

"We're looking for Cyborg. He's gone missing somehow," Robin explained. "What we do know is that their schoolmates are planning on breaking into the Jump City Prison to help them escape. I need both of you to intercept the team. It's presumed that there are three or four members in this squad."

"Understood, we'll stop these criminals," Thunder responded, pounding his chest with his fist.

"We're counting on you," Robin stated before signing off.

The brothers suddenly realized this was their first mission as members of the Teen Titans. Lightning smirked, clapping his twin's shoulder eagerly and ushering him along. They leaped off their cloud home, dashing down towards the California city. Currently, they were only a few miles away, traveling wherever the clouds moved. Both of them stared down at the city that was just in sight, smirking at each other before teleporting off.

Landing in the jail compound, Thunder looked around. It was heavily guarded with patrols almost every minute. Cameras watched every corner and corridor, nook and cranny of the cells. Several inmates were located in different cells, locked in together. Thunder and Lightning strolled down the cold, tiled floors through a set of sliding double doors. Two patrollers saluted them once they exposed their Titans' communicator, and one of them explained that Robin had already explained the situation with them.

"We can already assure you that we have everything under control," he said, gun in hand.

Lightning peered behind him, watching an explosion suddenly occur in the west wing of the cells. "I believe random bombings are also apart of your controlled area."

See-More, Kyd Wykkyd, Angel, and XL Terrestrial cockily sauntered in. They approached one certain cell that contained their classmates Jinx, Gizmo and Mammoth. The former's eye twitched, commenting that they were late. Gizmo snarled at XL Terrestrial as he simply shrugged.

"Ya snot-pickin', scrum-buffin', gunk-eaters are late!" he shrieked.

"Aw, come on, darling," Angel cooed, patting his head through the bars. "At least we showed up to save you. We could've have left you rot forever."

Gizmo shuddered, twitching at her comment. "Shut up…"

"I'm jus' surprised that you couldn't get out, Jinx, with your bad luck powers an' all," See-More commented with a grin.

"Just wait until I get out, then we'll see who really has bad luck," Jinx threatened.

"You are not getting released!" Lightning proclaimed, firing a bolt and blasting See-More.

The free H.I.V.E students stared over at their fallen comrade before glaring at the new coming Titans. Kyd blinked, waving his hand in front of See-More's face curiously. XL Terrestrial dragged See-More to his feet, shaking him slightly until he regained focus. A question mark appeared on his eye, and See-More pointed an awkward finger at him.

"Just who do ya think you punks are?" Mammoth demanded, gripping the bars of his prison cell.

"We are Thunder and Lightning-Honorary Titans!" Lightning jeered, raising his hands as electricity crackled along his arms.

"There were more of them?" Mammoth moaned in shock. "I thought there were only those five guys in Jump City!"

"We are in Jump City, moron," Jinx irritably quipped. "The Headmistress told us that there were Honorary Titans dispersed around the world."

"We are the ones who are going to keep you at bay!" Thunder bellowed, throwing both hands out as sonic blasts plowed into the unsuspecting squad.

Angel grunted, staggering to her feet. Her wings extended, blocking out her fellow students. "You are pretty naïve to come and attack when you do not comprehend our powers. Go, H.I.V.E!"

Troops of patrolling guards dashed in, surrounding the group as Angel took flight. Her wings, marvelous white and larger than the brothers thought, suddenly slashed downwards. A torrent of wind slashed the guards away, blasting them into the concrete walls into the realm of unconsciousness. Kyd suddenly vanished into a portal of darkness he conjured, reappearing besides Lightning and striking him across the face. The yellow elementalist, grunting, stumbled backwards as he rubbed his jaw. Kyd vanished yet again, this time landing on Thunder's shoulder and kicking him across the face.

XL Terrestrial took this at his cue. Pressing the arrow on his chest, he suddenly grew to a massive size, head nearly scraping the concrete. Thunder and Lightning gaped in shock, stunned at his transformation. Stomping his foot down created a harrowing crater, sending waves of dust at them. Blinded, the twins could only squint as See-More turned the dial on his eye to a new setting. A large plasma-like eyeball shot down, but Thunder was quick to recover by sending a beam of his namesake at it. It exploded on contact, blinding the fighting foes.

"Aw, man! They're actually fightin' back," See-More groaned as the smoke cleared.

"Brother, are you hurt?" Lightning asked, eyes widened slightly with concern.

"Yes, let us defeat them," Thunder replied confidently.

"Stop with the yappin'! Get us the heck outta here, scuzz-brains!" Gizmo shrieked, head flapping off like the Canadian characters from South Park.

Thunder and Lightning faced the four junior villains, anger crossing their faces. Taking to the skies, Lightning shot out and threw his mighty rays of electricity at the H.I.V.E students. XL Terrestrial shielded his body from the crackling shots, yelping out with pain as he was the easiest target and received most of the damage in the group. Thunder summoned a cloud, following his brother's lead and darted towards Kyd. The teleported swiftly threw his cape up, deflecting the ball of sonic waves Thunder threw back at him. Ducking, Thunder snatched Kyd by his cape, smashing him into See-More.

Enraged that her teammates were losing and getting hurt, Angel extended her wings fully. XL Terrestrial shrunk down to normal size, avoiding more of Lightning's strikes. Snatching his arrow, he switched it to a downwards position and pressed it. Lightning blinked, watching as the teenaged alien shrunk down a foot in size. Instantly, the memory of Beast Boy transforming into a rabbit came to mind, showing him how much trouble it would be to damage him. He dashed up to Lightning, clinging onto his arm and gnashed his razor sharp teeth onto his arm.

Yelping in agony, Lightning snatched the alien in his hand. "Little alien, you made the worst decision! Feel my fury!"

Charging his hand with his namesake, he gladly watched with an amused grin as his enemy drastically changed in size to his normal and miniature form as the electricity crackled over his body. Shoving the villainous alien away, he sneered wickedly as XL Terrestrial wobbled and flopped to his back. Garbling something in his native language, XL Terrestrial moaned, and his eyes rolled into the back of his head slowly. His head dropped to the side as he lost conscious.

"One is defeated, three more to go," he arrogantly snickered, facing See-More as the cyclops swapped gears in his eye.

Thunder barely dodged the wing of Angel. Raising his forearms as the wings came down, he snatched the white feathers and threw her into the ground. Crying out, she murmured that she was glad to be wearing a helmet. Thunder loomed over her, hands balled up into fists as energy warmed up around them.

"Why are you waiting, darling?" she snapped, losing her sickeningly adorable tone.

"It is like I told the Green One, it is not sporty to attack an unready opponent," Thunder replied sagely, grinning humorously.

"Huh, guess the Titans are a bunch of fools after all," Angel sniggered, brushing a misplaced strand of blonde hair. "Kyd, you know what to do."

Nodding, Kyd disappeared in a portal of darkness, attracting the brothers' attention. Lightning quickly made swift work of See-More, pinning his head against the concrete wall so he could not see and sent waves of electricity through his helmet. See-More grunted, sliding against the wall to the floor. Kyd reappeared inside the jail cell containing his fellow classmates.

"This cannot be pleasant," Thunder muttered as Angel rose to her feet and sent a wallop of a roundhouse kick to his cheek.

"Not pleasant at all," Angel purred cunningly.

Jinx, Gizmo and Mammoth gripped Kyd's shoulders as the latter slashed his cape into the air. Once it fell, they quadrant vanished into a portal of darkness. They did not appear like Thunder and Lightning expected, sending them both into a fit of confusion.

"What dark magic is this?" Lightning cried.

"He is a teleporter, brother! Be wary!" Thunder warned.

"Oh, be wary alright!"

Thunder barely had time to comprehend that Kyd's black cape threw out behind him, revealing the H.I.V.E students. Jinx sneered, being the one who shouted out, sent a slew of hexes at the newly made Titan. Thunder retorted by clapping his hands on the ground, sending shockwaves at them. Jinx gracefully flipped away as Gizmo activated his jet pack, dashing in the air and began blasting salvos at the brothers. The Titans quickly dashed in opposite directions as the lasers fired. Unfortunately, for one of the H.I.V.E students, Mammoth collapsed to the ground, surprised at Thunder's attack. Snatching one of the distorted tile slabs, he chucked it at Thunder's face, hitting him square in the jaw.

Gasping, Thunder toppled backwards and crashed onto his back. Groaning, he rubbed his bruised mouth weakly, finding that it was hard to move it. Mammoth hovered over him with Angel descending next to him. Grabbing Thunder's helmet, he heaved him off the ground and brought him until their noses were nearly touching.

"Heh, whassa matter? I'm too tough for ya?" Mammoth grunted with laughter.

His jaw pained him too much to speak. Thunder smirked, retaliating with a strong punch to the face. Mammoth did not get time to grunt, swirls coming to his eyes as he dropped Thunder. Quickly returning to his feet, he snatched Angel's wing and blasted her away with a beam of his namesake. Angel collapsed over Mammoth, but he quickly staggered to his feet and faced the blue elementalist.

Lightning and Jinx dashed along the room, exchanging blows. Lightning grimaced avoiding her pink hexes as they blasted along. Metal poles and structures began falling around him, one hitting him over the, head and he tripped. Gizmo took this as his chance, expanding his spider legs and slashing them both down onto Lightning. Pinned down, Lightning suddenly received an idea from what he did to a certain green panda. Snatching both of the spider legs, he charged his entire body with electricity, and it crawled up along the mechanical legs.

Gizmo's eyes bulged as the electricity traveled along his body, short-circuiting his entire system. Screaming a string of pseudo-swears, his head rolled in a circle before his legs contracted back inside his elite backpack and collapsed to the ground. Groaning, Gizmo's head slumped forward, and he muttered that he wanted to go home. Jinx hoisted him over her shoulder, sending a wave of hexes to the fallen Titan. He barely had enough time to transmute his lower body into electricity before dashing off.

The hexes crashed through the wall, and the metal in the walls began creaking and groaning. The adversaries stopped their battles, looking around nervously as Jinx' hexes slashed the wall where Lightning once lay near. The wall crashed open, revealing the clear day with only a few clouds out. The H.I.V.E students stared at the wall, completely surprised as Thunder and Lightning simply blinked.

Then, there was silence.

"…What are you cruddy scum waitin' for?" Gizmo shrieked, waving his tiny fist into the air. "Crammit, let's move!"

Thunder, feeling as though his teeth may have been cracked, snatched one of the broken slabs of concrete. With all of his might, he threw it at them in order to create a distraction, but Kyd suddenly appeared and waved his cape. The concrete vanished into a portal as Kyd pointed to the portal as he teammates were ready to run through the hole Jinx created.

"…How come we didn't do that in the first place?" Mammoth questioned.

"Shut up, we've got to get back to the H.I.V.E base underground the city," Jinx growled as See-More and XL Terrestrial began coming to their senses. She threw out her hands, creating a shockwave of hexes that sent the brothers flying into the wall.

"See ya around, ya snot-eating losers!" Gizmo jeered as he stepped in Kyd's portal as they all vanished.

Lightning grunted with hatred, slamming his fist against the cold, unforgiving concrete. Their first mission was a failure. The H.I.V.E students escaped flawlessly. Even if they managed to capture and restrain one of them, the feeling of guilty failure would not be so harsh. Staggering to his feet, he cracked his weak neck and finally took his brother into consideration.

Out of the pair, Thunder ended up with the worst casualties. He worked his jaw, groaning and rubbed his head. Lightning knelt by him, asking him if he was hurt. Thunder pointed to his mouth and hissed in pain.

"Those malicious demons shall pay dearly for this," Lightning vowed as his communicator began to ring. Horror played across his features as he slowly removed it from his armor. "Lightning is speaking."

"Yo, it's Beast Boy!" the changeling cheered from the other line; Lightning slapped himself in the forehead. "So, how's the mission goin'?"

"It is, uh, well!" Lightning lied as his brother stared at him incredulously. "We are pursuing the criminals and keeping them at bay. There is no need to assist us."

"Really? Because I coulda sworn I heard explosions. When I changed into a hummingbird to look for Cyborg, I saw some weird smoke," Beast Boy informed. "Everythin' okay?"

"Oh, smoke? Um, I believe it was an…accidental fire created by the incompetent chefs."

"Well, alright! Robin says once we find Cy will be over there and see what's up, 'kay?"

Lightning agreed, flipping his communicator off to find Thunder's eyes wider than saucers with arms crossed. "Did you expect me to reveal we completely, devastatingly ruined our first operation? If the Bird Boy knew about this, our status and titles as Honorary Titans would be stripped from us! Also, the Green One's mouth is larger than his head! You and I both know exactly what he would do if he was with that information."

Lightning crackled his hands with electricity with pathetic interpretations of Beast Boy and the other Robin. Thunder cocked an eyebrow, surprised at his brother's display.

"Leader, I have some information on Thunder and Lightning!" With his poor Beast Boy mimic, he moved his hand to indicate he was speaking. "Oh, continue Green One! I would be pleased to hear about my Honorary Titans and whatever they have done wrong! If they have failed, I would love to punish them severely!"

"N-never do that again!" Thunder stammered, fixing his jaw into place with a sickening crack and slapped his brother's hands away. "Come, brother, was the need to fib so great?"

"Yes! The disappointment on their faces, I can already envision it," Lightning moaned.

His face contorted into sadness, shoulders slumping. With a miserable sigh, Lightning changed up his electricity and was ready to take flight when the thoughtful look on Thunder's face convinced him otherwise. They failed, nothing could wipe the stain away. It was like a horrible first meeting where the shame would overshadow the glory, and their original meeting with the Titans was not worth mentioning

"Lightning, we can still capture them," Thunder proclaimed.

"How? They used dark magic and devious tricks. Plus, we are outnumbered."

"They are underground in this city, correct? Well, perhaps the need to lie was not wasted at all. Together, we share powers greater than their's, and remember, we faced the Teen Titans, defeated them and were outnumbered."

Lightning hopefully stared up at his brother, unblinking. Slowly, a smile crept along his mouth and nodded. "Then let us find and defeat them."

"Hey, who's gonna clean this mess up?" one of the semi-conscious guards growled.

Thunder and Lightning quirkily grinned, teleporting away.

---

The H.I.V.E Academy relocated underground Jump City because of the failed mission from Slade. He had threatened to reveal the school to the police or Teen Titans anonymously, and the school was rebuilt underground. The H.I.V.E Headmistress, a woman named Andrea Romano, mysteriously went missing during the time where Jinx and her team were captured. A man by the name Brother Blood took over the academy in her disappearance.

The new headmaster glowered down at his students, watching them in silent fury. See-More patted Jinx' shoulder, wishing her luck as he and the other students retreated. The confused students glanced around, unsure of the sudden dark tone in the room. Gizmo and Mammoth instinctively crowded behind Jinx who assumed the role of their leader.

"Under my rule…" Brother Blood began, stepping towards them. His eyes suddenly glowed a vicious, bright red and froze the graduates in their place. "FAILURE IS NOT TOLERATED!"

The trio shrunk at his tone, cringing as their attitudes did the same. Gizmo was ready to protest when Mammoth slammed his monstrous hand over his maw.

"As punishment for completely ruining this mission, the three of you are repeating this year," Brother Blood snarled, keeping his frown prominent.

Jinx, Gizmo and Mammoth gaped in shock and awe. Gizmo was the first to whine, stamping his foot until the hex-casting witch snatched his shoulder. Whispering that there were even more severe punishments like spending the rest of their mediocre lives in jail, Jinx released him and smiled at Mammoth's agreeable nod. Gizmo grunted, crossing his arms and sighed. The trio locked eyes with each other, submitting to their new Headmaster's whim and left for their old dormitories when the booming shout of Brother Blood froze them.

"Hold for a moment, I believe we have a visitors." With a wave of his hand, the doors opened to reveal two figures clad in purple robes. The trio of now held back H.I.V.E students blinked, recalling that the teachers only wore the robes to signify their importance in the academy. "I'll leave you to your new teachers. Goodbye." He quickly turned away, rounding a corridor.

The two teachers brought themselves down the steps. One was bulkier, but with a noticeable build while the other was lithe and flexible. Jinx approached them cautiously, not seeing their faces because of the shadows displayed from their hoods. Before she could state anything, a zap of lightning plowed her into Mammoth, but he steadied her. The larger one slammed his hands against the ground, creating a shockwave that forced all of them on their bottoms.

"Wh-what the hairball?" Gizmo cried, paling before reddening with fury. "Hey! Whose side are you on, barfbags?"

"This is a test," the skinny one stated, covering his mouth with his hand to hide his snicker, "to see how miserable your skills are."

The other one nodded, smirking underneath the shadow. "Come, show us your attack patterns."

"Attack Pattern Alpha!" Jinx ordered as the trio of H.I.V.E students recollected their composure.

Gizmo dashed out on his jetpack while Jinx threw her hexes at the ground. The two hooded figures darted to opposite sides while Mammoth dashed to the stronger opponent. The hooded man sneered, avoiding a sharp punch to the jaw and snatched Mammoth by his torso before throwing him to his partner. The skinny figure leaped over him and kicked him into Gizmo. The midget genius cried at out as Mammoth landed on him. Crying out pseudo-swears as he squirmed out from underneath, he was met with the larger of the duo who snatched his controller. Blue sparks ejected from his fingers and downwards along his body.

Gizmo shrieked as the sonic waves traveled along his body. "S-stop it! Hey, cut it out! You're shorting out my system!" Gizmo wretched himself free, twirled around in his own controller cords and flew away into a wall.

Jinx growled, throwing out her hexes to protect Gizmo when a kick barricaded her to the floor. Suddenly, she caught a glimpse of her assailant and gasped. "You're Lightning, one of those idiots that tried to send us back to jail!"

"I prefer the term 'Honorary Titan', right brother?" Lightning called, flipping his hood off.

Thunder nodded, smirking as he held Mammoth by his hair and punched him straight across the jaw. "That was for throwing a rock into my face!"

Mammoth grunted and fell unconscious, landing into Gizmo who collapsed directly onto Jinx. The trio of evil students groaned, and since Jinx was on the bottom, her oxygen was being quickly depleted. The two brothers stood behind them with Thunder clutching Mammoth by his ginger, matted hair. Lightning snatched a twitching Gizmo and a delirious Jinx, and the two nodded, teleporting away.

See-More walked in, holding a bouquet of roses and shouted, "Hey! Jinx, welcome ba-!" He blinked, noticing that she was gone and lowered his head. He held the roses forlornly as he sauntered back out. He noticed that Kyd Wykkyd was holding a camera, taking a picture of him before teleporting away. "Kyd! I am so gonna knock you into next semester when I find you!"

They teleported back to Jump City jail, throwing the trio of students into a new cell. This time, the cell was coded with an electric barrier so Gizmo inventions would not bust them free. A mixture steel and xenothium bars held the trouble-making teenagers inside as Jinx rubbed her head. Coming to, she glowered her pink eyes to the elemental brothers.

"How on Earth did you break into the academy?" she demanded.

"Simple, we overheard you speaking of the whereabouts of your school," Lightning explained, "so we teleported inside and hid."

"That is when we diverted the attention of the robe-wearing teachers," Thunder added, "with a simple ploy of saying that the Teen Titans had infiltrated their school."

"See, brother? Lying does assist in some cases as long as you can positively back your story up," Lightning stated as Thunder slapped himself in the forehead. "Did I say something wrong?"

"No, lying will get you no where, my brother." Thunder pinched his brow, shaking his head with a snicker.

"Yo!"

The brothers turned around to find Cyborg jogging up to them, seemingly fine. He sighed, cracking his neck circuits as the other Titans came up behind him. Raven peered over them, finding the defeated H.I.V.E trio and cocked an eyebrow.

"I guess they gave you some trouble, huh?" she asked.

"Some is a tentative word," Thunder stated. "We were able to subdue them before they could fully escape."

"Glorious! We have also fixed Cyborg's supply of energy," Starfire reported.

"She means my battery," Cyborg explained. "Ha! Gizmo's unconscious, let's draw on his face!"

"Cyborg, don't," Robin warned with a grin.

"Aw, come on, dude! Mammoth's out, too!" Beast Boy whined, pulling out multi-colored markers. "It'll be wicked fun!"

Robin rubbed his temples, shaking his head disapprovingly. The Titans groaned, glancing over to the fallen villains as officers came in. One pointed angrily to the brothers, proclaiming that they left a gaping hole in the side of the wall. Thunder and Lightning blinked, grinning weakly as the Titans blankly stared at them, but Starfire giggled into her palm.

"Ooooh! You're in trouble!" Beast Boy taunted until Lightning zapped him away.

"Fool," he muttered.

---

Please, leave a review because if you read and don't review, Slade kills a kitten. Think of the kittens.


	5. Zorkaberry Waffles

Teen Titans © DC Comics

Starring: Robin and Starfire. Rob/Star

Zorkaberry Waffles

It was common for the Boy Wonder to be the first one awake. The hues of dark gold and orange displayed their glory across Jump City's morning sky. Robin yawned peacefully, stretching as he slipped on his vibrant green gloves and entered the monitoring room where the kitchen was. He stretched his arms, grunting with slight effort and streaked a hand through his jet-black hair.

Robin glanced out the window, smiling at the blissful city. The metal skyscrapers tore through the sky as the busy streets were silent. The ocean glistened with the sun's reddening rays, shinning brilliantly white. Robin felt a smile tug at his lips, but deep down, he knew that once the criminals awoke, the city would once again fall into turmoil. However, he sighed and returned to the fridge, staring at the out-of-date, blue-coated food.

"Robin?"

He glanced up over the fridge, his eye twitching from the horrible smell as he slammed the door shut. Starfire floated over to him, smiling politely as she cocked her head at the refrigerator. Robin smiled at her arrival, knowing she was always the one to perk him up in the morning.

"Morning, Starfire," he greeted, edging away from the fridge. "I was just trying to find something to eat, but we got that blue mold back on all of our food."

"Oh, that is terrible!" Starfire cried. "Is the mold devouring away all of our food once?"

"Just contaminating it," Robin explained, peering inside the fridge. "Wait, what is it doing?"

The mold groaned, shifting around on what appeared to be cheese. It suddenly launched out, clinging to Robin's face. He shouted out fretfully, tugging at the disgusting fungus in frail hope of trying to pry it off. Starfire cried out to him, charging up her hand in a starbolt. Throwing her hand forward, her poignant starbolt stabbed onto the mold and plowed Robin in the couch. He flipped over, landing on his skull and groaned as the mold disintegrated. Gasping, she flew over to him and assisted him into sitting onto the couch.

"Forgive me, I did not mean to blast you," Starfire entreated as Robin rubbed his head. "I was simply attempting to remove the mold as you referred to it as."

"It's cool, Star," Robin stated, feebly consoling her. "Thanks for the help."

She beamed at the praise, her cheeks reddening slightly. "May I make you a Tamaranean breakfast? I must insist it is most delectable!"

Robin paled considerably, turning ghost white. The last time he ate something of Starfire's, which was her homemade glorg, it left him with a horrible rash that covered every portion of his body and a hernia. Robin remained silent, pursing his lips tightly as Starfire begged him with her eyes. She batted her long eyelashes in hopes of persuading him.

"…Okay, fine, it can't be that bad," Robin submitted.

She gasped happily, clasping her hands together. "Glorious! I shall cultivate the berries!"

Before Robin could protest, Starfire was already zooming joyously to the cabinet. He blinked curiously, watching her as she moved and smirked lightly. It had been a few weeks since the Teen Titans defeated Daizo and freed Brushogun, and since Robin and Starfire finally decided to become a couple, they grew closer. Robin began teaching Starfire proper Earth customs and speech patterns in case they went on any more vacations. Beast Boy continued to whine about going to Mexico, but Raven just slapped him over the head to silence his annoying moans.

Robin sighed, recalling the way his lips felt on her's, like the world melted away, and they were the only two that mattered. They kissed a few more times after that, making sure their intimate time together was by themselves. Usually, some random inconvenience would destroy the "moments that are sacred" as Starfire would call them. Last time, Mas y Menos barged in with presents for Starfire and were soon heartbroken when finding her in Robin's arms. It took a while to console the hypersonic twins, and Robin was not happy when the boys embraced her tightly and buried their faces on her ample chest.

Starfire soon returned to the kitchen counter with a bowl. Robin cocked his head, asking what she was making. She simply regarded him with a cheeky smile, pulling out a small spoon out. She pauses, humming bemusedly as if she forgot something before snapping her fingers. Returning to Robin, she leaned against the couch and hovered over him.

"What is the food that Raven regards as it is better than her own life?" she questioned.

Robin blinked. "Um, what?"

"Do you remember when Cyborg had the virus controlling his mind?"

He nodded. "Oh, I think it was waffles. Then again, that's all she has when it isn't tea."

"Are you partial to the 'waffles' as well?"

"Yeah, they're good."

If Starfire's grin could illuminate the globe, it would flourish light into the entire galaxy. Robin felt heat rising to his cheeks, and he quickly glanced away to his ever-so-interesting cape. Before he could ask anymore, Starfire was giddily giggling to herself as she scoured the other cabinets. A surge of relief suddenly overflowed in Robin's chest, knowing that she probably was going to force her legendary Supreme Glorg down his throat. The last time, he was hunched over the toilet for hours with Cyborg filming him with Beast Boy guffawing.

"Hey, Star, what exactly are you making?" he managed to call over as Starfire glanced over to him.

"I am creating a combination of original Tamaranean food with your Earthly food," she informed with a finger waving in the air. "It shall be glorious! Your buds of taste will be unbelievably soothed!"

"I think you mean 'taste buds', Star," he chuckled. Standing up, he approached her as she finally located the frozen waffles in their highest freezer storage. "Need any help? I may not look it, but I can make a mean waffle."

"Yes, I believe it would good for the bonding shared between the daters, correct?" Starfire questioned, her emerald eyes intently boring down on him, yet sparkled innocently.

"We're a couple. I'm your…" Robin suddenly trailed off, blushing as he added, "boyfriend, and-"

"I am the girlfriend, correct?" she finished, opening the small packet and ripping through the bags. Retrieving four separate waffles, she added, "Robin, I have been submerged in my thoughts for some time now."

Instantly, instinct kicked in. Robin leaned in closer, eyes wide and focused. "Did something happen? Are you alright, Starfire?"

"Yes, I am fine, Robin! Please, no more wide eyes that are filled with the fear." She reached for his cheek, grazing his soft skin with the backside of her fingers. "I was simply recalling our incident together on that lone planet."

Robin groaned inwardly, knowing that she was implying their fallout over miscommunication. He knew that Starfire wasn't completely used to human customs and was certain that the word 'girlfriend' commented that she was his female companion that helped him in floral designs. In fact, she learned the meaning from extensive research by reading. It was during that time that Robin began feeling strange towards her and vice versa, where their emotions for each other began growing. It was past a simple friendship and to the concept of love. On Tamaran, Starfire and her people were used to openly revealing their emotions while humans kept to themselves. Starfire soon learned that stammering was a sign of distress, embarrassment, or the typical sign of faltering male pride.

"W-what about it?" he asked shyly, glancing down at the waffles. His hand awkwardly combed down the back of his hair to his neck, and Starfire knew his male pride was dwindling.

"I would like to move past that," she stated softly. "I do not wish for another 'duke' as you would say."

"Starfire…" Robin gently took her hand as if he were making a powerful promise. "I think we already did. We've been through so much together from Trigon, the Brotherhood of Evil, Brushogun…Heh, in fact, I think that defeating Brushogun was the greatest moment so far in my life."

"W-why is that?"

"Because of this."

Robin leaned forward and gently kissed her. Lips caressed each other like a refreshing wave. Flustered at the sudden movement, Starfire was swept off her feet and almost flew into the air to perform flips. However, she remained poised, closing her gentle jade eyes, and after a few moments, he quietly parted.

"That kiss was just the best moment of my life so far, Star," Robin whispered in case anyone was listening.

Reopening her eyes, Starfire embraced him tightly. She heaved him off the ground in a backbreaking hug, and he grunted awkwardly. Once she placed him down, she kissed his cheek softly and returned to the waffles. Robin peered over her shoulder, wondering what she was creating. She took a small spoon from the drawer and retrieved the bowl of berries that Robin instantly recognized.

"Zorkaberries? Doesn't Silkie eat these?" he asked, cocking a thin eyebrow.

"They are delicious," she insisted and began mashing them up with the spoon. "May you please toast the waffles?" When he simply stared at her, she pointed towards the toaster, and he nodded in realization.

"So, what exactly are you making?" he questioned again.

"Zorkaberry Waffles!" Starfire exclaimed joyously. "It is as I stated before, I am combining the Earthly food with my home planet's zorkaberries. It will create an exceptional dish that will make even the most lobstery of people like X'Hal."

"X'Hal? Who's she? A friend of yours?"

Perplexity covered her face as she gasped. Her hands instantly went to her chest as though she was struck with a paralyzing blow. Her heart skipped a beat as Starfire's emerald eyes bore down on him with intense shock.

"Um, Star?" Robin took a protective step backwards as Starfire beamed suddenly.

"On my planet, we Tamaraneans worship the goddess X'Hal," she explained brightly. "She is the sun and the hope of our people! Unlike your planet which has the many religions, Tamaran has one."

"Wow, sounds cool," Robin replied earnestly, unsure of how to respond.

"X'Hal is most certainly not 'cool'. Why would she be having the chill?"

Robin chuckled lightly. "I mean, she sounds like a good goddess to follow. I don't really get into religious talks with people, so yeah. In fact, one religion would probably solve most of the problems in this world. Must be why Tamaran is a bit of a peaceful planet, no civil wars or anything."

Starfire smiled, nodding as the toaster suddenly dinged. Jolted, she gasped, and her hand splattered into the bowl of mashed zorkaberries. As Robin collected the twin waffles, Starfire slipped her tongue along her hand, lapping up the zorkaberries and let out a squeal of joy. From the cabinet, she retrieved two separate plates and placed the waffles on them with matching metal spoons.

"Please watch," she requested, taking her spoon.

Dipping her spoon into the zorkaberries, she swiped a small amount and slathered them along her waffle. Expectantly, Starfire watched Robin as he stared nervously at the concoction. Usually, Starfire was an excellent cook, but that was with her Tamaranean dishes and not Earth food. In fact, her favorite food was mustard. One time, Robin recalled her sharing a pizza slice with him and dousing it with mustard and vegetables. Robin soon lost his appetite after that. With a gulp, Robin shakily stabbed his spoon into the dark brick red goop and withdrew the zorkaberry sludge. He raised his utensil over his waffle and shook it gently so that it fell off with an audible plop.

"You will enjoy the diverse texture, I know this," Starfire jeered, taking her waffle and taking an eager bite. She shivered in delight, eyes sparkling like jades. "Magnificent! I had the 'gut feeling' this dish was going to be glorious! You must partake, Robin!"

With a gulp and a quick mental prayer to whoever was above the clouds, Robin grazed his fingers around the crusty surface of the waffle. It crumbled slightly in his sudden grip as he brought it to his lips. Parting them slightly, he took a quick bite and brought the waffle away. He allowed it to wait on his tongue before chewing. It was…oddly sweet like a hard candy with the tangy filling. Robin's eyes widened in wonderment, taking another bite and grinned.

"You're right, Star, this is pretty good!" Robin cheered, smiling a few molars wider than normal.

Starfire gasped in pleasure, clasping her hands together. "I knew you would enjoy!"

"Aw, you guys havin' a moment?"

Their blissful moment ruined, they turned to face the source. Beast Boy, Cyborg and Raven stood at the door with the former's hands on his hips. Cyborg crossed his arms, addressing himself as the one who spoke. Raven rolled her eyes with a tiny smirk and began to fix herself a small cup of herbal tea.

"Ya know, it's totally sweet when you're staring in each other's eyes," Beast Boy added as Cyborg snickered.

A vein popped up in their leader's forehead. Suddenly, a playful smirk crossed his maw as he leaned forward to get in Beast Boy's face. "Jealous?"

"Of course he is, Beast Boy can't get a girlfriend," Raven spat.

"Aw, come on Raven! That was harsh!" Beast Boy whined, feigning a mist to cover his vision.

"It's true," she bluntly replied.

Starfire smiled as Beast Boy frowned and laid his head down on the counter. She sat down a can of his favorite tofu, instantly perking him up. Cyborg smirked, rubbing Robin's head as he crossed to their fridge and located the eggs and orange juice. Starfire watched as her friends ate and spoke with Raven bringing out one of her novels. Robin glanced over to her and wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"I have a feeling today's gonna be great," he stated.

"I second the feeling," she whispered, locking eyes with him and resting her head on his shoulder.

---

Please, review. Wow, this is the first time the actual Titans make their first, full-fledged appearance.


	6. Comic Book

Teen Titans © DC Comics

Starring: Beast Boy and Raven. BB/Rae.

Comic Book

"What are you doing, Beast Boy?"

"Can't you ever say 'hello' or something?" Beast Boy muttered as he scoured through the dump known as his room. He threw several items over his shoulder as he spoke. "The first words I always hear outta you whenever you see me is, 'what are you doing' or 'don't touch the' whatever."

Raven leaned against his door, noticing that he was reading some sort of book that was placed next to him as he kneeled. "What's that?"

His fang seemed move as he grinned widely and leaped to his feet. Presenting her a perfectly fine comic book, he gently caressed the cover with his cheek and giggled blissfully. "It's the new Mega Monkeys comic book! After the video game series, they decided to make a comic! I was first in line to buy it which is totally sweet!"

Raven quirked an eyebrow, arms crossed as the amateurish art glazed the cover and insides. It seemed to be a legit comic for children under ten with hardly any real violence, drama or pain. She rolled her violet eyes and offered her hand for the comic.

"Check it out! Its way better than any of your musty old books," Beast Boy sneered as he slapped the first issue in her open palm.

"Right," she sarcastically replied, "and robot chickens will one day rule the world."

"Hey, that's what I said to Cyborg, but he didn't believe me!"

Shaking her head, she glanced down at the first page and immediately knew her curiosity was a terrible emotion. The artwork was sloppy with several discolorations, the humor was potty, and the plotline was completely insane. For some reason, the monkeys were shooting at a giant robot chicken that could barely speak their language. In fact, Raven thought the entire comic was childishly by the first page.

"Beast Boy, honestly, this is completely illogical," she bluntly stated.

"You only read one page," Beast Boy insisted. "It gets better, I swear!"

Raven was one who once she started a book, even a seemingly terrible comic, she refused to put it down. She flipped the page, reading on. Apparently, the entire plot was that the robot chicken villain was attempting to rule the world, but a team of super powered monkeys valiantly stopped him. There were a few quirks every few panels with humorous expressions. The robot chicken used several robots to try to defeat the monkeys, but using the power of teamwork, they overcame. The comic ended with all of them going out to buy pizza.

Raven felt the story was familiar as she closed to comic. Beast Boy eagerly asked her if she enjoyed it, and she just stared at him as if he was a fool. His face slowly fell nervously before frowning. He placed the comic back onto his bed and sighed.

"Yeah, should've guessed you weren't an avid comic nut like me," he joked.

"I liked it," she replied.

Beast Boy froze as if he was in a block of ice. The hand scratching the back of his head remained motionless. "R-really? You, mysterious goth girl Raven, liked a comic?" Yanking out a magnifying glass, he raised it to her face to inspect her. "Are you a clone like Larry or something?"

The gem on her forehead sparkled before a thin stream of black energy came out and zapped the device. Beast Boy blinked as the shattered glass was enveloped in the same pulsing black and was dropped in his trash. He took the comic and flipped through a few pages before stopping. A small grin came to his face as he pointed to a certain panel that exposed the "goth" monkey hitting the jokester of the group.

"Let me guess, this part made you snicker right? Kinda like you and me," he muttered.

"And the part where the foreign monkey girl doesn't know what a nickname is, or where the cybernetic monkey says "Booyah!" and the angst-ridden, but fun-loving leader." Raven flipped through the pages to expose the lat page where they were all fighting over pizza. "I think the writers decided to reference us more than once."

Beast Boy's eyebrows shot up in shock, gasping as he snatched the comic back. "Dude! Nice catch!" He thumbed through the pages, smirking at one certain page. "I guess we've got Raven Monkey hitting on BB Monkey, huh?"

Quirking an eyebrow, she leaned in as she saw the green monkey wrapping an arm around the cloaked gothic-like monkey girl. Raven felt her cheeks heat up as a dribble of sweat crossed the side of her pale face. She quickly ignored the urge to destroy the comic but than she noticed the next panel.

"Seems the goth monkey gets her valid revenge," she stated.

Blinking, Beast Boy looked at the panel to find the green monkey being thrown off a cliff. "…So not fair. You already did that to me when we visited Kole last week!"

Shrugging, Raven glanced down at the comic, and the question slipped out of her mouth before she could stop herself. "Can I borrow that?"

"You wanna read a comic?" Beast Boy's emerald eyes widened in abrupt shock, leaning in on her. "Are you really Raven? Are you sure you're not one of her emotion clones or whatever those colored Ravens were?"

"I'm sure, and never mind. I don't want it anymore," Raven huffed, a streak of crimson beginning to taint her cheeks. She gasped softly when Beast Boy snatched her arm and slid the comic book into her palm. Hesitating, the empathic heroine stared down at the child's comic before slowly connecting eyes with Beast Boy.

"Sure, I'll let ya borrow that, but one condition though," Beast Boy playfully jeered, his smirk widening.

She knew there was a catch. With Beast Boy, there always was one. She cocked her head to the side slightly.

"I wanna read one of those books you have in your room," he declared.

The fact that Beast Boy said the word "books" sent her into a sent her into a fit of disbelief. Almost automatically, she found herself in an inner turmoil. From the outside, Beast Boy was messy and somewhat irresponsible to the point of irritation. He, however, did learn from his mistakes and could be an amazing leader. Examples of that was when he taught Thunder and Lightning that hurting others for one's amusement was wrong and leading a team of motley new Titans to take down the Brotherhood of Evil. Raven looked up, clearly deep in thought as she fingered the comic book with deep interest. Finally, after much contemplation, she heaved a sigh and nodded.

"Sah-weet!" Beast Boy pumped a victorious fist into the air that Raven swiftly captured.

"If my book has even a torn page, you will be sorry," she threatened quietly, gripping her sharp nails into his skin.

Meekly, the changeling nodded and saluted her. Raven wrapped the duo in a cloak of darkness, and they both reappeared in Raven's room. Since Beast Boy had visited her room a few times before, he was pleasantly surprised to find that her room was lit. Raven's room had what Beast Boy still expected with were dusty books, strange and mystical artifacts, and what looked like jewelry by her bedside. Books resided in a circle around the center of the room, and Raven knelt down to peer along her collection of novels. Beast Boy waited patiently behind her as she suddenly jolted up and turned around to him.

"Here, this was one of the very first books I read on Azarath when I was younger. You should like it," Raven informed. As Beast Boy blew dust off the cover, she added, "It's about a boy searching for his true love."

"Say what?" he asked quickly. "You…like romance stories?"

"I told you, I read it when I was younger," she bluntly quipped with crossed arms. "I can get you something else if you want."

"Nah, this sounds pretty good. I always like a good romance novel here and there." Beast Boy shrugged and began to read as he walked out of the room. "I'll return this when I finish it."

"Tell me what you think, alright?"

"No problem! You told me that you liked my comic, so I'll see if I like this!"

The door behind Beast Boy closed shut, and Raven quickly returned to the comic book in hand. Sitting quietly on her bed, she sat down and flipped the cover open, becoming absorbed with the story like any other past book.

The story itself was utterly simplistic. Five super powered teenaged monkeys fight an evil robot chicken with weapons and their own powers. The action was rather comical with enlarged expressions, but what struck her was the interaction between the green, joking monkey and the sarcastic, cloaked female monkey. The girl seemed to do whatever it took so the green one would simply shut up, but the way the behaved was exactly like how Raven treated Beast Boy in the beginning.

She would retort rather harshly at him, tell him he was an idiot or use sarcasm to get her point across. Beast Boy would insult her infrequently, but he'd apologize later. It was like a never-ending pattern. Raven sighed, continuously reading the comic until it was burned into her memory. Placing the comic by her bedside, her head lifted in the dimly lit room as a rap suddenly jolted her from her thoughts.

"Hey, Raven? I have no idea what these guys are saying," Beast Boy called.

"It's Shakespeare, Beast Boy, there are foot notes to the side of the sentence," she replied as the door slid open a crack.

There was a moment of silence as she shut the door. However, Beast Boy's snicker came echoing underneath the door and remained there. Becoming agitated, Raven inwardly fumed and turned towards the door in a minor huff. Beast Boy was giggling stupidly into one of the pages, glancing wryly over to Raven. Quirking a normally poised eyebrow, she suddenly gasped as Beast Boy pointed to a certain name.

There was the dialogue for the entrance of Romeo with a large heart around it. It the heart it read, _R+R Together Forever._

"Wow, Raven, I never knew you liked the sensitive, impulsive guy like this Romeo dude. Guess you fall for story characters, huh? Kinda like Malchior?"

Raven paled considerably as she snatched the book out of Beast Boy's hand and crumpled the page up. With a tear, she exploded the page with her powers and glowered darkly at Beast Boy. She stormed back into her room, grabbed the comic and slammed it back into Beast Boy's hand.

"If you ever say that I again, I'll go Trigon on you," she warned lowly as the door shut between them.

Beast Boy felt a pang of confusion in his chest, recollecting the Malchior incident. She had fallen in love with the terrible, deceiving dragon. He knew that Raven wasn't as cold-hearted as he once perceived. Guilt came to his chest as he glanced back into the comic book, leaning against the wall by her door. Thumbing through the Mega Monkeys comic, Beast Boy hesitated once he saw the panel Raven had been eyeing earlier with the green monkey joking with the gothic one which ended with the former getting caught in a sewer pipe. Beast Boy gaped slightly, pressing his ear to Raven's door and could've sworn that he heard a sob.

"Um, Raven? Listen, I-I didn't mean to make fun of you about…you know," he feebly stated. "I-I really mean it, sorry. Just, uh, don't hate me okay?"

"I don't," came her sullen reply from inside.

Beast Boy paused, wondering if she would come to the door. "Can I come in?"

"Door's unlocked."

Taking this as the proper invitation, Beast Boy entered the room to find Raven meditating by a series of candles. The Shakespeare play remained at her feet with the crushed page in her trash can. Beast Boy hesitated, pursing his lips together as he quietly placed the comic book overhead and into her clasped hands.

"Look, I forgive you, but I really didn't appreciate you bringing up Malchior," she murmured.

"I know, I'm sorry," he replied earnestly. "C'mon, ya gotta forgive me."

Raven glanced over to him, one eye closed in concentration. She hummed in mock though as Beast Boy leaned in on her with a large, glimmering smile that entreated forgiveness. With a quick sleight of hand, Raven slapped him over the head and grinned.

"There," she stated. "I forgive you."

Beast Boy paused, rubbing a hand through his hair and snickered. "So, why did you want to read that comic again?"

"Because it reminded me of us, and I sort of wanted to re-read it. It was…amusing," she replied almost inaudibly.

"Us? Like, you and me us?"

The thought sent a jolt through Raven as she fervently shook her head. "That's not what I implied. I meant that it reminded me of the Titans."

"Oh."

"…Was that disappointment?"

"N-no!"

Raven turned to face him, a small smirk plastering her face. "There's a faint blush on your cheeks."

"No, no there isn't." Beast Boy crossed his arms defiantly. "Well…"

"Well, what?"

"I noticed you keep looking back at the panel with the monkeys that kinda look like us, ya know? So, I just thought you were talkin' about that, is all."

It was Raven's turn to feel her cheeks heat up. She shook her head slowly, glancing down at the comic's cover to find the gothic monkey standing next to the green monkey with the latter's arm around the former. She soon felt an arm slink around her shoulders and gasped gently. Beast Boy glanced away, looking down to the book Raven previously loaned him and sat next to her.

"So…wanna read this together?" he offered slowly. "I kinda don't get it."

Raven hesitated, unsure of how to reply. Beast Boy wasn't exactly the bookworm type like herself, and he usually watched the movie version of books. She faced him as he leaned close to her face, clinging to her arm as he let loose a string of begs. Raven sighed, nodding, and regretted it almost instantly.

"Okay! I'll be Romeo and you can be Juliet!" Beast Boy jeered. "And for the other guys and chicks…um…I dunno! We'll figure something out!"

Raven smirked, chuckling lightly and opened to the first page of the tragic play.


	7. Jazz

Teen Titans © DC Comics

Starring: Jericho and The Herald. Friendshipper.

Jazz

Silence was not golden. To others like Raven and Jinx who loved their quiet moments, Jericho did not. He would bring out his guitar and play a soft tune to himself when on his own. Life was not that difficult, especially when he could sit by himself and strum his fingers across the guitar strings. He would close his jade eyes and let the waves of the music overtake him to his private paradise.

Of course, that was before he assisted in stopping the Brotherhood of Evil. Most of his blissful times were usually shattered by a random villain attacking the city or Hotspot making a muck of things in the kitchen with Pantha. Jericho was the mediator of the Titans North, and while he did not have a problem with it, he sometimes wished that he could get time to himself to play his guitar.

Jericho crept into the kitchen, tugging at his tunic to crease over the wrinkles when a pancake was flung at his head. Barely ducking in time, he mouthed a gasp and frantically looked over to find Hotspot doubling over to him and hiding behind him.

"Man, you have got to help me!" Hotspot whimpered, looking around feverishly and held a broken plate where the pancake came from. From behind Jericho, he cried, "It was an accident, I swear!"

Jericho cocked an eyebrow in confusion.

"Where are you, Flamehead? I'm gonna wring you a new one!" Pantha screamed, accent thick and shrill.

"What's going on?"

Both turned to find Herald walking in, cobalt hood down to reveal soft, bumpy black hair. He blinked a few times when Hotspot suddenly snatched his portal-opening trumpet that was strapped to his belt.

"Please! Send me somewhere!" Hotspot entreated, falling to his knees as Pantha's footsteps stomped closer.

"Uh, where?" Herald questioned, voice filled with confusion as Jericho silently chuckled.

"Anywhere!"

Shrugging, Hotspot put his trumpet to his lips and blew. A wave of sound erupted, followed by a swirling gray vortex. Thanking his friend, Hotspot quickly leaped inside. The vortex quickly evaporated once all of Hotspot had dove inside.

Pantha stormed in, out of breath. Her hair had been soiled with maple syrup from the apparent "incident" that just occurred with Hotspot. The female wrestler glanced over to her teammates, crossing her arms and demanded to know where Hotspot was.

"He's probably hiding somewhere. Try a closet," Herald suggested. "He's renowned for his petty hiding places, so I'd start there if I were you."

Thanking him, Pantha grazed past them, cursing under her breath. Once she was out of hearing range, Herald released a sigh, smirking.

Jericho glanced back to his trumpet and curiously pointed to it. _How often do you play? _he signed with intrigue.

Herald blinked, surprise written on his face as he gazed back down to the trumpet. "How often? A few times a day, I guess. Lot more during fights, though." Recalling that Jericho played the guitar, he threw the question back at the mute Titan. "What about you? How often do you jam out to your guitar?"

Perplexed, the blond shook his head rapidly, signing, _Jam? Well, I usually just play oldies or soft rock._

"Really? Well, I've never heard you play before, 'cept for a few times, but you got interrupted by the others," Herald explained. "You're awesome at it, by the way from the snippets I heard."

Smiling jovially, Jericho nodded his head in thanks. _I've heard you as well. I really like the jazz vibe you give when you play. It really suits you._

"Heh, ya think? The rents were always nagging me about becoming a musician. Follow the "family business" as Dad always said." Herald chuckled lightly, shaking his head and brought his trumpet back to his face.

Jericho noticed a glaze came across Herald's face. The young musician leant against the countertop, crossing his legs as Jericho suddenly snapped his fingers in what Herald thought was to bring him out of his dreamy haze. Herald blinked, coming out of his gaze to find Jericho suddenly running off to his room. Curiosity took a hold of him, prompting him to follow. Greeting Wildebeest, who was busy glaring at the television that was broadcasting an ad for animal fur, Herald quickly hurried away as his wooly companion proceeded to punch the television and destroy it.

"Man, somebody's gotta get that guy a collar or something," he muttered as he approached Jericho's room.

Before he could enter, the suddenly enthusiastic younger teen snatched his arm and dragged him inside. Yelping, Herald stumbled inside with wide eyes as the door behind him slid shut. Jericho quickly sat cross-legged on his bed and gestured for Herald to sit by him. Hesitating as he was uncertain of his motives, Herald shrugged and slumped next to him at the foot of the bed.

In his arms was his guitar. The way Jericho cradled the instrument was filled with nurturing care. The guitar had been given to him by his mother as a parting gift. Jericho dearly loved his mother, but he was uncertain as to where her location was currently. He would try to find her, but it proved to be difficult with his muteness. Not many people could sign, making communication rather poor.

Even his comrades in Titans North had some problems in understanding him. When they faced a few bank robbers, Jericho signed that he would take the leader. However, Hotspot thought he signed that he was one of them, and Pantha threw him off the roof of the bank into a car. Jericho wasn't one to hold a grudge, but he made sure to hide Pantha's fifty pound dumbbells in Hotspot's room and quietly watched as she promptly beat him up.

_Ah, good times,_ Jericho had thought as Hotspot was sling across the living room.

"Well, what's up?" Herald questioned with intrigue.

_See if you can follow along, _he signed, tuning his guitar before resting it on his lap.

Before Herald could reply, Jericho's gentle fingertips grazed the string. A soft, melodious wave of sound passed through them. Jericho gripped the strings and played, plucking each with skilled, lithe fingers that entranced Herald. Each brush of the string brought an eruption of bliss to the room. The whole tower seemed to be filled with the moving music, silencing all that dared to interrupt.

Herald hesitated, gripping his trumpet and stared down to it. He stared at the valves, wondering how to match Jericho with his guitar. It would be a strange combination, he perceived, a guitar and trumpet. Yet, when he took a precautionary glance to Jericho, he found jade eyes begging him to form a duet. A couplet between two musicians and friends. Herald nodded in response, bringing the trumpet to his lips and softly blew.

The instant he joined in, the musical waves combined. The soft hums of the guitar synched with the slightly boisterously bold murmurs of Herald's trumpet. Neither were certain were their enclosed duet was going, but they both kept steady pace and intonation. Their harmonious melody echoed through the deathly silent Tower, racing throughout the hallways and dancing in the rooms.

From their respective spots, Pantha and Wildebeest blinked in confusion at the sound. Hotspot, who Herald transported into a washing machine, opened the bathroom door to find Pantha glaring at him and winced.

"I'll deal with you after we find the source of the sound," she announced as Wildebeest loyally followed.

"Huh, sounds sort of…melodic," Hotspot mused as the others nodded and walked down the hall to the source of the sound.

Jericho and Herald's tempo sped up, becoming upbeat and bright. The music jumped and swerved, going from high to low notes. Jericho quickened the pace on his guitar to match Herald's formidable trumpeting. Each breath brought beautiful gloats of music from Herald's trumpets as the valves were pressed with quick precision. Jericho's fingers danced along the strings, brushing them expeditiously. The musicians glanced up towards each other, catching their gazes and smiled. Although Herald's was somewhat lopsided because of the trumpet, both felt the calming notes wash over them.

"Whoa!"

Both suddenly gasped, though Jericho's was silent. Hotspot stood in the blonde youth's doorframe with Pantha and Wildebeest behind them. All three jaws were slacking before Pantha started an awkward clapping. Hotspot and Wildebeest joined in, smiling and asked for an encore.

"Sorry, _mi amigos, _if we interrupted you," Pantha stated sheepishly.

"It's cool," Herald replied, adjusting the valves. Bringing the trumpet back up to his lips, he glanced over to Jericho, asking, "Well, what do you say, Jer? Should we give 'em an encore like they asked?"

Jericho smiled broadly and shook his head. _This time, _he signed, _you start us off._

----

I always liked Jericho and Herald when they came out together in Titans Together. They always gave off the "we're gonna be best friends now!" vibe.


	8. Five I

Random drabbles.

Teen Titans © DC Comics

Lick

Pairing: Lightning/Kole

Lightning stared down at the pale manila colored cone in his hand. A large white glob of dripping, but frozen liquid was plopped on top. A question mark practically appeared over his head to emphasize his confusion. He and Kole were sitting together on a bench in Jump City's park. She offered to buy them ice cream, but he was not sure what it was, and she was genuinely shocked. She decided that by tasting it, he would immediately love it.

"It looks…like bird doo," Lightning murmured, raising the cone into the eye, closing one eye to gaze at it.

"Well, it isn't. It tastes delicious," Kole urged, taking a quick nibble from the vanilla one she bought. "Try it!"

Lightning stared at her, and she smiled and nodded towards the ice cream. He leaned in close, experimentally taking a bite and reared back. His lips were smothered with the white ice cream, and he frowned when Kole giggled onto her palm. It melted into his mouth, and he moaned softly before gasping.

"It is gone, and I did not have to chew!" he cried. "It is…magnificent!" A large grin was plastered on his face, eyes alight with bliss. Laughing slightly, he gazed back down to Kole and noticed something that bothered him. "What are you doing?"Kole's tongue was out, flicking upwards and took into a scope of vanilla ice cream. "Well, you don't technically bite ice cream. You lick it."

Lightning stared in wonder at the girl. She took another lick, but some went onto her nose. Pointing this out, he snickered when she went to wipe it, but suddenly snatched her hand.

"Hey, what're you-!"

Lightning leaned down and licked the ice cream straight off her nose with a quick flick of his tongue. Stunned, Kole did not realize that Lightning stole her ice cream and began to walk away. Flustered, she reddened to the tint of her hair and stormed after him, shouting obscenities as Lightning chortled. When she started bolting after him, Lightning yelped and flew away.

"I know where you live!" Kole shrieked.

"…Blast," Lightning muttered, licking her ice cream cone.

Fast Friends

"You are a liar," Lightning snarled, glaring death at his brother.

Thunder glanced back over to him, a broad smirk on his face. "I am not. I am stating the truth."

"That is a lie!" Lightning quickly snapped.

Both were sitting on Thunder's cloud, watching over Iron City, New Zealand. It was late at night, and both decided that some fresh air before falling asleep would do them good. Lightning leaned over his brother's shoulder, pouting with a stiff lower lip, and Thunder merely glanced away, snickering.

"What makes you so certain?" he growled, wrapping his arms around Thunder's neck.

"Because the way you look at him ensures what I know," Thunder replied.

"…Curse you, brother," Lightning huffed and turned away.

"Come, now, brother. Why can you not admit it?"

Lightning crossed his arms, but Thunder wrapped his arm around Lightning's shoulder, bringing him back. "Because he is a sonic fool!"

"You respect him, though. That is all I am saying."

Sighing, Lightning looked back down to the T-shaped Tower he and his brother resided in. Titans South had been created a little over a month ago, and he and Kid Flash immediately bantered over who was the fastest. Every time they fought, it would end in a draw. Lightning was dead serious on winning, but Kid Flash was a confident jokester, similar to Beast Boy in a way that actually made him funny. What Lightning disliked about him was that he was so suave and cool, and that everyone could instantly like him.

"Yes, I respect him, but I do not like him," Lightning muttered, leaning onto Thunder's broad shoulder. Suddenly, he shot up and jabbed a finger in Thunder's face. "If you perceive that I am in love with him-!"

"No! No!" Thunder cried, cutting him off and waved his hands. "I am not thinking that at all! Yet, why do you not like him?"

"He is annoying, bothersome, believes he is better than Lightning," He counted his fingers, listing off more reasons until Thunder shook his head.

"Well, Kid Flash believes that you are his friend," Thunder explained as Lightning glanced up to him in intrigue. "He told me that he does not want you to dislike him over your arguments."

"…Can I dislike him because I think he is annoying?"

"…He said that was fine. His very words were 'I get that a lot, so it doesn't bother me. Just ask Jinx, she knows'."

"Because he stalked her, the freak."

Thunder laughed, patting Lightning's shoulder. "That is true, brother."

"I will attempt at being a better friend towards him, but if he dares laugh at Lightning…" He charged up his hand, an insane gleam coming to his eyes. "…there shall be pain."

Monster

Cyborg gazed down at himself. His hands, legs, upper, and lower body were metal. All cold, unfeeling metal. He could not even feel the softness of Sarasim's hair, the grainy sand on the beach or even the cool steel of his car. He stared at himself in the mirror, and the red eye blinked back at him.

He placed his hand on the mirror, staring darkly at his reflection. All that looked back was more metal than flesh. At school, he was a technical genius, able to acquire knowledge quickly and put everything aside to learn. He lost his life of sports because of his body. He was such a promising athlete in baseball, football and many other sports. He would train himself to be harder, faster, better than the rest.

Now he could not.

Cyborg grit his teeth, and he strained his hand against the mirror. He was barely a man save for parts of his face, eye, some organs, and random flesh on his arms. Everything else was robotic, but he was proud that he could lift tons of weight that he never could before and blast enemies out of the sky with his creations.

Suddenly, the mirror cracked, making him gasp. Shards of glass dropped down by him, showing off his deformed body. Cyborg reared back in terror of what he had become. Dropping to his knees, he quietly collected the glass and stared at the random parts of himself that reflected back at him. Cyborg threw each piece in the trash, and out of his only human eye came a tear.

Hot and Cold

Pairing: Red Star/Pantha

Pantha lived in South America all her life, and she was used to the burning sun. The temperature was always hot like saunas. Even in the ring was the warmth of the brutal, fiery sphere. The sweat and stench of the wrestling ring was her calming place, and beating up luchadors only made her sneer.

Therefore, when Red Star asked her to visit in him in Russia, she practically succumbed to the imminent freezing weather in five seconds.

"How can you stand this?" she asked as Red Star ushered her inside his home.

"Stand what?" he asked, red eyes blinking.

She pointed outside. A blizzard was brewing, and whips of frigid wind howled about. Snow piled up outside. It come up to their knees once they had reached his home. Pantha placed her elbow onto the coffee table, keeping her head up with her hand with the other on her frostbitten knee.

"Oh, the snow? Well, it is different there in South America, yes?" Red Star asked with a cheeky smile on his face.

She would have loved to wipe that grin off his cheerful, square face, but nodded instead. "Well, yeah, but this is ridiculous."

Red Star paused, removing his uniform to reveal a white tank that sculpted his physique. Pantha could not help but stare, blinking and quickly sat up straight when he pulled a chair next to her. He was still grinning, making her conscious of his actions.

"If I were in South America right now, and it was over eighty degrees, I would be complaining as you are now," Red Star jeered, smiling innocently.

Pantha opened her mouth to respond. However, nothing came out. Feeling like an utter fool, she quickly closed her mouth and turned away. Red Star blinked, hoping he did not upset her when she sneered back at him.

"Not bad, Leonid," she snickered. "I did not think you could come up with a response."

"Well, I try my best," he chuckled.

Punk

Pairing: Thunder/Argent

Lightning, Kid Flash and Jinx just stared at them. They blinked a few times, not sure if what they were seeing was reality or something their messed-up minds imagined. Argent and Thunder merely gazed back, having returned from the mall. Kid Flash raised his finger and opened his mouth to speak.

"If you mock me, I will obliterate you," Thunder coolly threatened.

Kid Flash shut up instantly.

"Argent, how did you…? I mean, when…?" Jinx cleared her throat, nudging Lightning to speak.

"What demonic articles of clothing are you wearing, brother?" Lightning demanded shrilly, voice higher than usual.

Instead of the cloth armor the other three Titans South members were so used to Thunder wearing, he donned baggy, jet black Tripp pants with several adornments of chains along with a ripped-at-the-sleeves ebony jacket. The belt Thunder wore looped around his waist with a skull belt buckle that hung down towards his thigh. His black hair, which was usually all hidden underneath his helmet, was in a short ponytail, and parts of his bangs came down over his left eye, dyed crimson. He even wore leather boots with many straps up to his knees and half-fingerless, white and black gloves. To make the scene even more disturbing for Lightning, Thunder had a dark blue earring in his right ear.

Lightning fainted dead away. He twitched, and everybody was thinking that at any moment, he would start foaming at the mouth. Thunder blinked, surprised at his brother's reaction. Kid Flash looked down at him, but suddenly smirked at Thunder and gave him a thumbs-up.

"Nice. I always wondered what you'd look like in street clothes," he jeered, taking Lightning's arm and swung it over his shoulder. "I'll just take your bro to the infirmary. Maybe he'll rest and wake up to see you dressed like that again. Hey, maybe he'll even start whimpering!" Laughing, he darted off towards South's medical room.

Jinx stared at him before looking Thunder up and down. A grin split across her face, nodding approvingly. "I always knew that Argent would get you to do this, but how?"

"Well, I simply wanted to try something new," Thunder explained as Argent clung to his arm.

"Mm-hm, and I just figured that blue boy here would look utterly dazzling in punk clothes," Argent gushed, tapping Thunder's cheek lightly. "We had to do it early in the morning before Lightning woke up or he'd have a similar issue like right now."

"Well, Thunder, you certainly have my eye." Jinx winked at him, making Thunder chuckle nervously.

"Back off, you have Kid Flash," Argent growled quickly, narrowing her crimson eyes at her leader.

Jinx laughed, bringing a hand to her lips. "Don't worry, Thunder's too sensitive for me. I'll go check on Kid Flash, make sure he actually puts Lightning in the medical bay this time instead of the chimney…like last time." With that, she skipped off.

"Is…being sensitive a bad thing?" Thunder asked, frowning in confusion.

"No, of course not! Jinx is just weird like that," Argent replied. "Hey, thanks for dressing up like this. You didn't have to."

"I wanted to," Thunder insisted, smiling broadly. "I was always intrigued by your look, and I wanted to see the results if I donned the clothes of a…punk, is it?"

"Yep, you're getting the hang of this, blue boy." Argent leaned up and kissed his cheek, making him blush. "So, wanna watch Repo! The Genetic Opera again?"

"Certainly!"


	9. Five II

More drabbles to ruin your minds with.

Teen Titans © DC Comics

Mr. Big Hair

Speedy gazed at himself in the mirror. His chiseled face, sparkling emerald orbs hidden behind a mysterious, but suave mask, and his orange hair that he worked on for about two hours stared back. A bright sneer plastered onto himself and the mirror, and he sighed in complete bliss.

He was in his room, door open along with the window. Sitting comfortably on his bed, he quietly laid back, humming to himself as he continued to stare at his face. Speedy smoothed down any randomly misplaced strings, pulling them out to not ruin his "sculpted", as he would claim, face.

"Ah, the face of a Greek god," he cooed, sighing contently.

"Wow, you're not vain or anything."

Whirling around, he found Aqualad leaning against the open door's frame. Speedy inwardly cringed, now wishing he had shut the door. The Atlantean chuckled, crossing his arms as Speedy instinctively snatched for his arrows before relaxing as he stated that Aqualad was not a threat.

"Oh, come on. 'Face of a Greek god'?" he mocked as Speedy reddened.

"…Oh, like _you _don't spend four hours in the bathroom fixing up your hair! I only take two!" Speedy retorted.

"Okay, I spend an hour because I need the water to breathe."

"Still!"

Aqualad laughed, patting his friend's back. "Don't worry. I won't tell the twins and Bee about this."

Speedy shot a warning arrow at Aqualad's head, meaning him wince. "Yeah, because if you do, let's just say that the pool will be drained and the windows will be barred."

Aqualad gulped.

Truths and Lies

"Ya know what, Robin?"

The Boy Wonder looked over to changeling as Beast Boy paused his video games. "What's up?"

"Did you know that apparently Starfire was sold to be a sex slave to save her planet?"

Robin choked on the soda he was drinking, eyes bulging at the news. Shaking his head to calm himself, he was about to reply when Beast Boy interjected.

"And that Slade got shot in the eye from his estranged wife because he let their kid get his throat cut open?"

"Beast Boy, how do you-?"

"Or that Argent, Hot Spot, Thunder, and Lightning are half-alien?"

"Beast Boy…"

"And that Kid Flash used to have this girlfriend named Francis Kane, but then they broke up and she and Jinx got into a catfight over him that Jinx thought was stupid? Then Kid Flash filmed it so they beat the crud outta him."

Robin remained silent, blinking at Beast Boy as he started to count off his fingers.

"Oh! Pantha and Red Star adopted a cute little guy named Baby Wildebeest, and Cyborg is a pimp and so is Kid Flash and Jericho, and that apparently I'm an angst-ridden adolescent who uses humor to mask his pain, and that Slade is in love with you or you're in love with him and that's why you're so obsessed with him, and your real name is-"

"Beast Boy!"

He paused as he stopped counting his fingers, having gone onto the next hand when he ran out and did not use thumbs.

"Wh-where did you get all of this?" Robin stuttered, blinking behind his mask.

"Internet."

Façade

Pairing: One-sided See-more/Jinx, implied Kid Flash/Jinx

Jinx glanced over to See-more, blinking blankly as he called her name for the third time. A delirious air hovered around her, and her pink, cat-like orbs seemed to glaze over. She was sitting on the Hive Five's couch, staring ahead at the pot of freshly plucked roses that was filled halfway with water.

"Uh, Jinx?" See-more waved his hand in front of her face, and she gasped at the glove's intrusion.

"Oh, sorry!" She quickly shook her head, stretching and feigned a yawn. "What's wrong?"

See-more hesitated, looking over to the crimson flowers Jinx blearily gazed at. "I was asking where you got those, uh, gifts. Oh, hey, no way! Did that sonic-runnin' guy come back again? Did he hurt you and try to cover it with that?"

Jinx noted the sudden animosity in his voice, taken aback as See-more sat by her in a huff. "Yes, Kid Flash came and gave them to me, and no, he did not hurt me. He delivered them to me a few minutes ago when you guys went off to annoy the Titans."

"We were robbing the mall, something you like doing." See-more leaned forward towards her, placing a hand to her forehead, asking, "You feeling alright?"

"I'm fine, See-more," she insisted, pushing his hand away with a slight grin.

"But you don't come out with us ever since that…that guy came around." See-more sighed, shaking his head. "I heard what he said to you, and I don't like it. You've been acting strange, like, you ain't been stealing, haven't been as interested in jewelry. It's like you're a whole new person ever since that guy came around!"

"There's more to life than petty thievery!" she snapped, shoving him back.

See-more yelped, falling off the couch and watched in shock as Jinx stormed off. He saw her wipe her eyes as she hurried to her room. He heard her sniffle, getting to his feet as she entered the elevator a few feet away. He watched her morbidly, lips a tight frown as Jinx stared sadly back at him.

"I'm sorry, I'm starting to change," she whispered as the doors closed.

See-more wondered what she meant. The first two words were rare for any self-respecting villainess, but the last four haunted him. She was becoming different than the cocky, tricky girl he had fallen for. Biting his lip, he turned back to the roses Kid Flash gave her and snarled. Snatching the white vase, he chucked it against the wall and incinerated the roses with his heat vision function from his eye. He inwardly cursed Kid Flash for this new Jinx. Why wasn't he good enough? Was he that much of a loser?

On the elevator, Jinx looked at her paler-than-usual reflection. Under her eyes were dark rings of sleepless nights, thinking of what Kid Flash proposed. She smacked the elevator, shouting as she felt the sting of See-more's agonized expression. Running to her room, she shoved the door open and cried openly once they shut safely behind her. Grasping a dark pink unicorn plush, she loathed herself. Weakness seemed to devour her along with self-pity like a wave.

"I am only living on a lie," she whispered through sobs.

Suddenly, a hand clutched her shoulder, and she looked up with shocked eyes to her savior.

"Kid Flash…"

Arm Wrestling

Pairing: Red Star/Pantha

"Aw, come on, Thunder, you cannot be chicken," Pantha sneered, ruby lips curving up to a smirk.

Thunder frowned as Lightning snickered tauntingly. "I am not a fowl."

"Sure, you're not." Pantha continued grinning as Thunder inwardly fumed.

"But why won't you, Thunder?" Red Star asked curiously. "It is only us."

Thunder continued glowering at Pantha. "Because this is utmost annoyance. I do not wish to partake."

Lightning smirked, arms crossed. The four were hanging out in Titans South's living room where Red Star and Pantha had been invited over to help stop a super strong villain named Sarge. Through the combined efforts of Pantha, Red Star and Thunder, they were able to key in victory. However, Lightning mocked his brother on his lack of strength and challenged Pantha to arm wrestle his brother in hopes of saving Thunder's faltering pride that he caused to diminish. While she was ecstatic on proving her dominating power, Thunder was not as keen.

"Come now, brother! She is only a woman," Lightning urged, patting his shoulder. "She is weaker."

Pantha blinked at Lightning's statement. She walked over to Lightning and snatched his alabaster hair. Whipping him across the room, his shrill cry was music to her ears as he landed into the cabinet. Lightning's eyes rolled in his head before flopping onto his stomach.

Red Star whistled, smiling at the Latina. "Very nice."

Pantha blushed at the attention, crossing her arms as Thunder nudged Lightning with his foot. "Eh, he was being a brat."

"Though, Thunder…" Red Star gestured for him and Pantha to sit, and they did. "…I made a bet with your brother. He is optimistic for you, but I truly believe that Pantha can defeat you. I'm sorry, but that is what I think."

Perplexed, Thunder sighed and placed his arm on the table with a confident. "I shall prove you wrong. For my brother, I shall win."

"Now, we are talking!" Pantha jeered, slapping her hand into his.

Red Star continued to grin, and Lightning limped back to his brother, cheering him on. Their strength matched, moving each other slight centimeters in their favored direction before pushing back to the middle. Pantha growled, glaring at the blue elemental darkly as veins started popping up on her hand. Thunder grunted, eye twitching and gripped her hand tighter. Gasping, she kept her strength pinned on her wrist to prevent Thunder from pushing anymore.

"Yes, brother! Another push, and you are victorious!" Lightning gleefully clasped his hands together, laughing in amusement.

"Rosabelle, you can do it. Do not give up," Red Star gently urged.

Something inside Red Star's words inspired a spark to rise up within her. Pantha suddenly gave short roar and actually heaved Thunder's arm to crash into the table and throw him out the window. The last part was by pure accident and an adrenaline rush. Thunder screamed until he hit the pavement below.

"Oh, Hsuan! Thunder!" Lightning wailed, flying out the broken window. From below, Pantha and Red Star could still make out his whining. "Hsuan, that was pathetic. I cannot believe that you lost!"

"Do not start with me, you brat!" Thunder snapped, face embedded into the ground with his arm waving wildly.

"I swear, I didn't mean that," Pantha quickly stated as she and Red Star watched Lightning tap Thunder with is sandal until he swatted him away. "I think I just stripped Thunder of whatever dignity he had going for him."

"That was incredible," Red Star replied, wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

A meek redness came to grace her cheeks. "W-well, it was, uh, thanks to you." At his confused stare, she smiled bashfully. "Uh, what you said when Thunder was beating me. It sorta…jumpstarted me."

Red's Star kind, pacifistic grin melted her heart as he kissed her cheek. "I am glad I could be of help."

Meanwhile, Thunder and Lightning were having a brawl in the middle of the street. Moving on.

Sisters

Starfire was ten when Blackfire killed right in front of her. Blackfire, older, wiser, stronger, and more cynical, merely stared right at the Gordanian's corpse that had attacked them in hopes of capturing the favored princess. The monster's green blood was splattered on her arms. Galfore stood behind Starfire, than known as Koriand'r, with his eyes wide in shock. Blackfire, then known as Komand'r, calmly disposed of the blood by wiping it off, smirking as she stepped towards her frightful younger sister.

"Just look at this, Kory," she sneered in their planet's tongue, shoving her back into Galfore, "the 'beauteous, normal heir' to the throne is what the peasants call you. Just because I look different, it means nothing! Black hair, purple eyes, ha! I look better than you, sister. I can kill. That's what makes me better. We're at war. There's no way you could lead."

With that, Komand'r flew off until she was a violet streak in the sky, wearing her proper black dress. The Gordanians were ruthlessly attacking, stirring up war. Koriand'r was unsupportive of the way, but she knew that they were after the princesses which included herself and her brother, Prince Ryand'r. This made her want to become stronger, mentally and physically, but killing seemed extreme, especially since it occurred right in front of her eyes.

"Princess," Galfore whispered, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"No, Galfore, I am fine. My sister…she feels the pain of persecution. Since she is different, people think she is an unworthy heir, but she is the first-born, the rightful heir to the throne, not I." Her head went to her chest, clenching the rims of her white dress. "This has made my sister bitter and angry. I wish I could understand, but I cannot."

Galfore hugged the young princess, picking her up and whispered, "Don't worry. Your sister is strong, but vain, and her heart cannot match the valor in your's."

Koriand'r smiled, emerald orbs shimmering as Galfore carried her back to the castle on his broad shoulder. However, pangs of agony came for her beloved sister. Komand'r would glare and taunt Koriand'r, defeating her in vicious battles, races, being better than her each time. Yet, she could pity Komand'r for the secret, jaded whispers from the darkness. People would jeer at her for her megalomania and appearance. It was the only advantage Koriand'r had over her older sister, and she wished she did not.


End file.
